what is family?

family: a social unit living together

i think, as i'm sure most people do, that it is so much more than this. But, what exactly is it? a shared genetic makeup? a shared last name? a father, mother, and their children? what is it exactly? i think its foolish to try and define family as it means so much for so many different people. i'm sure there are numerous amounts of people who live together who don't see themselves as family, even those who share blood, who have the same last name. family can't simply be those things. . . so what is it. as i said i think it's foolish to make an attempt at defining family. that being said, i do think it's an important thing to think about for yourself. . . .what does family mean to you. well, while you think about it, i'm going to tell you what it means to me.
I'm not a big fan of labels. I think that that is a product of my up bringing. i suppose it's weird because i have very structured, organized parents and structure and organization are two of my weakest character traits. for my family, A=A and B=B. for me A=whatever the heck you want it to be. I'm not defined by titles. I think as a culutre, americans like titles. they want to know if you're boyfriend and girlfriend, or just dating. to americans you don't sing, you're a singer. you're an athlete, you're not athletic, you are artistic, you don't just enjoy art. americans like to define everything and are comfortable only when they know what to call something. because of that, names/terms/titles hold a lot of power in our society. i think i make a sub conscious effort to rid myself of that. . . stigma.
for example, i have 11 siblings. . . no i don't i actually only have nine. . . no i actually have 11. see to me sibling isn't limited to what my government issued documents say. i use the term brother, and sister as a means to let people know how much they mean to me. my brother isn't my brother simply because we share blood or because we were raised in the same house with the same parents, my brother is my brother because to me water is runs deeper than blood. now of my 11 siblings only one is biologically, and genetically related to me. the rest, i love, treat, and consider my family. i think that its great when you call some one aunt (insert not genetically related name here) or uncle (repeat previous stated process). i think its crucial to recognize that outside of the confines of genes, that family can is something much greater than genetic codes and similar DNA. to me, family is another type of love. it has nothing to do with gentics or parents. i think, that english as a language is limited in its word choices. We have one word for the most powerful emotion of all, love. To me, family is what i do when i love someone to a greater extent than a best friend, or even a blood relative. family is a word i use to tell people how imporant they are to me, and how much i desire for them to be apart of my life, my world. It's a word for unconditional unwavering love. . . that's what family means to me, what does it mean to you?