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Tell me about your family," I said. And so she did. I listened intently as my mother went through each branch of the tree. Years later, after the fune...more

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You have one family, Charley. For good or bad. You have one family. You can’t trade them in. You can’t lie to them. You can’t run two at once, substit...more

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I also believe that parents, if they love you, will hold you up safely, above their swirling waters, and sometimes that means you'll never know what t...more

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Every family is a ghost story.

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I also believe that parents, if they love you, will hold you up safely, above their swirling waters, and sometimes that means you'll never know what t...more

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...But behind all your stories is always your mother's story, because hers is where yours begins.

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It is not until much later, as the skin sags and the heart weakens, that children understand; their stories, and all their accomplishments, sit atop t...more

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All parents damage their children. It cannot be helped. Youth, like pristine glass, absorbs the prints of its handlers. Some parents smudge, others cr...more

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There is no experience like having children.’ That’s all. There is no substitute for it. You cannot do it with a friend. You cannot do it with a lover...more

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The fact is, there is no foundation, no secure ground, upon which people may stand today if it isn’t the family. If you don’t have the support and lov...more

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This is part of what a family is about, not just love, but letting others know there’s someone who is watching out for them. It’s what I missed so muc...more

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This is part of what a family is about, not just love. It's knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you th...more

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The problem is that we don't believe that we are much alike as we are. Whites and blacks, Catholic and Protestants, men and women. If we saw each othe...more