Family Is Underrated.

“Where are you going?” Sebastian asked, suspicious.
“Just going to ask my Mum something...” I said back, lying through my teeth.
“You’re going to tell her I was picking my nose, aren’t you!”
“No.”  I smiled, like butter wouldn’t melt.

“Sebbie! Stop picking your nose!” My Mum shouted back into the lounge to Sebastian who had been picking his nose.

The above is an excerpt of just one of the many stories that always come out when I hang out with my Mother’s side of the family. We can’t have been more than six at the time, but Sebastian without fail always brings up this story, ratting on me for being a tell tale. It’s one of the tamer stories and there are plenty that are wonderfully embarrassing and telling of the child I used to be. One that Sebastian’s Mother (my Aunt) always brings up, is a story of me running through her back door only to trip over her door mat and then reprimand her for leaving her door mat there.  I was a clumsy kid, what can I say.

Anyway, the point of writing this wasn’t to embarrass myself with stories of my childhood, but to remind myself of how important family is. I’ve never been particularly close to my family, not in the way some girls were when I was at University. I know they’d be there if I needed them and I called them often enough. My Mum is a worrier and my Dad’s far more black and white and laid back about everything. Still, things have been a bit shit at the moment (as times sometimes are) and it makes me think about how long it was since I saw either of them.

I live in Winchester, which is probably a good 3 hour train journey to Kent where my Mum is, so I haven’t seen her since Christmas. My Dad’s in London, so he’s a little more accessible; Easter Sunday was the last time I saw him.

Sebastian, my cousin (older than me by 6 months) also lives in Winchester now as he came to University here the year after me. Having Sebastian in town is quite nice, considering up until the age of about 9 he was almost like a the brother I never had.  We went on holiday with his family and my Dad every year, he came to my birthday parties and we always spent Christmas together. Whilst I don’t see him very often now, when we do catch up for a drink it’s nice. His parents came down from Surrey yesterday to visit and I went out for dinner with them all.

Seb’s Mum and mine are identical twins, so hanging out with Sebastian’s Mum makes me feel closer to mine. I know that sounds really lame, but I miss my family sometimes, so what?
Anyway, we drove out into the country and ate dinner at a cute little riverside pub then they dropped me home. Although not a massive excursion from the mess that is my life currently, it was nice to be occupied and have my brain focus on other things aside from work, my MA, my need to move house, my lack of money and the recent end of my relationship.

It’s my birthday at the end of the month, and I’m determined to see my family and enjoy it. It would be very easy just to work and wallow in nothingness and then blame everyone but myself for a crap birthday but it’s no one’s responsibility but my own to get on with things and make things good. After all, why shouldn’t I?