---
title: The Weird World Of Families
date: 2025-10-10T00:00:00
author: Charlie M.
category: SIGNAL
---
I woke up today to sunlight sneaking through the curtains, one of those rare mornings where I didn't need an alarm. I lay there for a bit, picking at the pile of thoughts I left unresolved from yesterday, maybe hoping for something to make more sense or click into place. Families. Yeah, that was on my mind. How weird they are. Isn't it strange how people we've known our whole lives can feel like strangers sometimes? Or maybe it’s just me.
Scrolling through Instagram later - I probably spend too much time on that, but what else is new? - I see those perfect family portraits, everyone color-coordinated and smiling like they’re auditioning for a toothpaste commercial. And I'm like, do these people ever fight over what’s for dinner or why the dishes are still in the sink? Do they feel that weird disconnect sometimes too? I mean, statistically speaking, some families must be like that, right? I remember reading something about how around 70 percent of families report some kind of dysfunction, though don't quote me on that exact number. It could be more or less. Or completely wrong.
I think about my own family, how we orbit around each other, our paths crisscrossing in the kitchen or the living room, but do we ever really connect? I sometimes think we speak different languages, even though we’re all technically fluent in English. I’ve tried bringing up the whole communication thing during one of those awkward family dinners where everyone’s staring at their plates more than each other, but it usually fizzles out. I don't know why I keep trying. Maybe I think something will change if I poke at it enough? Maybe it’s just some deep-rooted hope that’s probably misguided.
There's this study I stumbled upon while doomscrolling late at night, you know, when you get sucked into the internet’s endless black hole of information. Something about attachment styles and how they impact family dynamics. It made me wonder about my own family. Are we all just products of some mismatched attachment styles? Is it fixable? And if it is, how the hell would I even go about fixing it? Feels like when I was sucked into that workout cult for a bit, trying to convince myself that I’d hit the gym every day, only to surrender to the siren call of my couch. I guess my commitment to family improvement is about as solid as my workout routine.
I don't really have any answers. Maybe there aren't any. Why do some families feel like these tight-knit tribes and others, like mine, feel more like a bunch of housemates who forgot to sign a lease. I keep wondering if there’s a manual or a hack, like there is for almost everything else these days. I hear about therapy and family meetings, but man, coordinating just one dinner is hard enough. And what if we open up this Pandora’s box of issues and it just makes things weirder?
So yeah, families. Weird, unpredictable, and messy. Maybe that’s just how it is. Maybe next time I’m lying in the sun, I’ll figure it out, or at least find a better question to ask. Or maybe I'll just fall back asleep. Who knows?