I tend to be quiet when there’s a group of people sitting around, talking. It’s just my nature to sit still and absorb. Lately I’ve heard several crew members on the ship talking about their families.
There was a lot of excitement when we launched from Earth more than six months ago. Sure, there was sadness, too, as we slowly pulled away from the tug of gravity…and the tug of families.
Now it seems that we’ve all grown up, more so than we would have back home. Responsibility (and a few near-death experiences) will do that to you. I’ve mostly noticed it in the way people talk about their loved ones. You would think it would be a lot of “I miss them,” or ”I wish I could hug them right now.”
There might be a touch of that, but what I’m mostly hearing is something different. Most of my fellow travelers have looked inward, and have discovered the best qualities of their parents, grandparents, brother and sisters. They suddenly notice that they have their father’s sense of humor, or their mother’s curiosity. They are seeing the threads that tie all families together, beyond just the physical traits. We are all
fragments of our parents’ personalities, and many of us are just now discovering what a gift that can be.
I miss my dad every day. I keep his photo beside my bed, and his memory in my heart. Yet as each day passes, I find that there are pieces of him bumping around inside me, showing up in ways I would never have expected.
Is it because we’re missing them that we’re finding this out? Or would we have discovered it no matter what? At what age do most young people really see their parents for the first time…I mean, really see them?
(How about it, Galahad fans? Any thoughts on what Triana has to say? You’re always welcome to post your comments!)
i think that they wouldve started seeing their parents even without bahktul.
ive started noticing similarities between me and my father’s personality. but
as much as people’s personalities are created based on their families’ their
just as much affected by their friends. i spend a lot of time with my friends
and i kno a lot of my personality comes from them, theres some parts of my
personality that i kno no one else in my family has. maybe the galahad crew
hasnt noticed that as much because their closer to their families and they’re
more focused on their families.
This is an interesting thing to think about since we very often tell ourselves
and others that we don’t ever want to be anything like our parents. Like it
or not, we all have traits that come directly from our parents. This is not
to say that we have to be just like them (heaven forbid(: ), but there will be
pieces.
I think the teens on Galahad would eventually have seen these traits on Earth,
but not at their current age. I didn’t really start seeing these similarities
until after I left college even and started living in the big, bad, real
world.
Unfortunately I don’t know that many of really see our parents until it is too
late. We may love and appreciate them, but do we really think about what they
mean in our lives until they really aren’t? This might be due to a big move
or death. I am glad my parents are part of my life and that I have plenty of
opportunities to continue learning about them and reminding them that I love
them.
I agree with Jen. We see different parts of our parents at different times in our lives. I didn’t see those important parts of my father until after he was gone. However, my vision became clearer and like Triana I feel him bumping around in my heart and mind all of the time. I would suggest to teens they take time to get to know their parents and see who they really are.