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The word “Family” means different things to different people.  Most immediately centre on the ‘nuclear’ family of parents and children.  When asked to describe their ‘family’ married people always include their spouse and their own parents (the children’s grandparents) and siblings (the children’s aunts and uncles).  Many however, have an even larger network that can include aunts and uncles, cousins, grandparents or godparents, or even the close friends of our parents.  Whereas ‘relative’ complies a relationship with less closeness and fewer expectations, ‘family’ is always a term used to denote ties of deeper intimacy and obligation

Emotional and moral ties

The boundaries of your own family will be drawn by what kind of relationship you have with each individual within it.  You may frequently see one particular person, such as a first cousin, simply because you enjoy his or her company.  Such is the power of the family ideal, however, that you may also find yourself spending just as much time on far less rewarding relationship because you feel you must.

Going shopping with your mother in law might not make for a perfect Saturday, but you might feel it is part of your family duty to do so.  For this reason, family ties to seldom seen and distant relations who live far away may survive despite a lack of emotional closeness.

Grandparents 

The bond between grandparents and grandchildren are important.  Busy parents can find it hard to provide the degree of attention children need; grandparents, however, usually have ample time and willingness to play.  Also because they are slightly removed from parent/child disputes, grandparents can be calm and reassuring, providing emotional support to both their own child and grandchild, and thus help to ease communication.

Children who need a mentor or a mediator sometimes find it easier to approach a grandparent for advice, especially if they expect their parents will be critical or not interested.  Finally, grandparents are important as the guardians and archivists of the family heritage.  Their photo albums, heirlooms, and almost magical stories can create closeness between the old and young, and are bridges by which moral values are transmitted from one generation to the next.