Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family.  Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.  ~ Jane Howard

Eleven years ago today, thousands of people lost loved ones, members of their ‘family’, in one of the most tragic events in United States history.

Family doesn’t have to mean blood related or related by marriage. Family are also those people who lift you up and encourage you, make you smile, know when to offer a bear hug or a silly joke, the ones who accept you for who you are and loves you for you.

All of these relationships, especially the ones that encourage growth, acceptance and appreciation, need nurturing. Below are 20 bits of advice to ensure those relationships continue to bloom and flourish as well as to seed new, healthy connections. Read more