The funny thing is, I have never thought of our family as broken at all. I honestly can't remember ever sustaining an injury from a rock, but I've been bruised quite a few times by intangible, though nonetheless lethal, words. Of course, I would be less than honest not to admit lobbing a few abrasive ones myself. I knew what the phrase was meant to define, but I never personally paid attention to the real connotation. Then again, my skin is predictably thicker, given that I'm 23 years older than my daughter.
Age has a way of doing that.
Though I may not always agree with what she has to say, I always admire the depth of her belief, the sturdy way she backs up any debate and, most of all, I love how Katie feels so passionately about things. One could say part of it is youth, but I have this feeling that when Katie is 80, she still will be fiercely voicing and defending her particular take on any given issue. Just as I predicted, Katie shared with me how members of a family that happen to be divorced are generally no more whole or broken than families who happen to have both parents living in the same home. While I am absolutely no proponent of divorce and maintain the highest level of respect for marriage, I will admit that our own home, and even I, at times felt very much in pieces before my divorce. My kids and I and yes, no doubt their father, probably have done a great deal of healing in the ensuing years.