It Takes a Village

The old saying "it takes a village to raise a child" has evolved, in my opinion.

While I still think the principle applies today, I believe that the method and way that the said village helps raise the said child has evolved greatly.

When I was growing up the village that helped raise me was relatively small--it consisted of the people who were directly in my life, every day. It consisted of my friends and my family that lived in my house or in my neighborhood.

Sure, I had good relationships with my grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles--but we were limited on our interactions because of geography and a lack of technology.

Since my little sister, Kaitlyn (cute girl with huge glasses pictured above), has been accepted to graduate school at the University of Alabama, I've been thinking a lot about the village that I will have helping raise my child.

Kaitlyn will be in Alabama and my other sister, Karissa (pictured with her family below), will be in Chicago with her family (and I'm the loser who can't quite move beyond Orem...and that's quite alright with me). Had these changes been happening 15-20 years ago (shoot, even 10 years ago), we would have had very limited interactions with them and it would have been difficult for them to be a major player in the village that would help raise our children.

But now, because of the many blessings of technology, I am so happy that both of them can be major players and factors in that village. I am so happy that my grandma (the one and only Punki) can play a role in the village that helps raise my child.

I've missed Karissa and her family a lot--and I always wish Lily and Faith were closer. But, that said, I feel like I haven't missed a single beat. I haven't missed a thing with either of them--and it's because of technology that our proximity has drawn closer, despite the fact that we live 2000 miles away.

I'll miss Kaitlyn like crazy (mostly because I am now out of family to torment), but I love the fact that technology has narrowed that distance. Kaitlyn, Karissa, Lily, Faith, and Brady can all play major roles in the development and growth of our child. They can all be a part of our village with very little or no effort on our end anymore. I'll forever be grateful for that.

I think our child will be so well-rounded because of the influence of Annie's family (about 10,000 Strong (pun intended)) around us and my parents around us--but he/she will also have the opportunity to develop a strong bond with his/her aunts and uncle and cousins across the country.

Our village is no longer those close to us. It's a digital village. And that's awesome!