A belated Friday Five
1. Are you and your birth family close?
Yes (but also, it’s complicated).
2. How far away do you live from your various family members?
At least a few thousand miles from nearly all of my blood relatives. Much closer to my out-laws.
3. When was the last time you visited with relatives?
Only about a month ago, but it already feels like ages. :(
4. Do your relatives travel to visit you?
Hahahaha no. My parents are in their eighties and have been to the UK exactly twice since I moved here. My other family don’t have passports or don’t have enough money to travel to the UK or both.
This has, weirdly, become harder on me emotionally the longer I’ve lived here. The twentieth anniversary of me moving to the UK passed quietly a couple of weeks back: ironically, whilst I was in the USA, sitting on the beach in Los Angeles.
5. How do you stay in touch with family: phone calls, email, snail mail, texts, other?
All of the above, although snail mail has dropped off in the past four or five years, since I have most relatives either on WhatsApp or Messenger so that I can send them photos easily.
Yes (but also, it’s complicated).
2. How far away do you live from your various family members?
At least a few thousand miles from nearly all of my blood relatives. Much closer to my out-laws.
3. When was the last time you visited with relatives?
Only about a month ago, but it already feels like ages. :(
4. Do your relatives travel to visit you?
Hahahaha no. My parents are in their eighties and have been to the UK exactly twice since I moved here. My other family don’t have passports or don’t have enough money to travel to the UK or both.
This has, weirdly, become harder on me emotionally the longer I’ve lived here. The twentieth anniversary of me moving to the UK passed quietly a couple of weeks back: ironically, whilst I was in the USA, sitting on the beach in Los Angeles.
5. How do you stay in touch with family: phone calls, email, snail mail, texts, other?
All of the above, although snail mail has dropped off in the past four or five years, since I have most relatives either on WhatsApp or Messenger so that I can send them photos easily.