Family
By Don Iannone

Life's mysterious hand works through families,
leading them in many unforeseen directions,
At times, carrying them off course into perilous waters,
Other times, granting them joyous journeys between harbors,
It's more than the name you share with your family,
There is a unique chemistry, running deep inside
all it touches, superseding whatever occupies
the family in any given moment,
Reaching across generations, the chemistry
touches the youngest, oldest, and all in between,
You can see it in their faces, hear it in their voices,
and feel it in their spirits,
Sadness and joy flow from the same chemistry,
One cannot exist without the other,
It makes us unmistakably...family.