Family can mean many things. It can refer to your immediate family, extended family, the family you create by living with someone, or the growing family you may hope to have one day.

The relationships we see around us can shape and change us, especially at a young age. We look up to our parents for several years, and the relationship between our parents may be the one we observe and analyze the most. Do they love each other first and their kids second? Do they try to hide arguments or have full blown yelling fights in the kitchen? Were they openly affectionate with each other or did they never touch in front of you? Family dynamics can be difficult, especially if your parents divorced during your childhood.

What makes these relationships so important? When you’ve had a relationship with someone since birth, there is a level of authenticity that is formed. You have shared experiences, memories, etc. from your childhood.

I enjoy Disney’s movie, Encanto, for a number of reasons, but mostly because of how relatable the main characters are and how much we can learn from them. Spoiler alert, if you haven’t seen the movie yet and want to, you may want to watch it first before reading the rest of this.

Let’s start with Mirabel, the perky, sweet, teenager we are introduced to in the beginning of the movie. Apparently, she is the only one in her family not to have received a magical gift and so she is dealing with feeling average or left out but is trying to be positive about it. I wonder how many times this story has played out in our own lives? I know for me, while there are things that I am good at, I don’t have a special gift that sets me apart. Feelings of inadequacy have followed me all throughout my life. The question of “What do I have to offer?”, is one that most people struggle with at some time in their lives.