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We live in a society that celebrates familial connection above any other kind of relationship. We are shown photos of our great-grandparents and encouraged to marvel over facial similarities. We are told to take pride in our bloodlines, celebrate our ancestry.

Although I come from a family who are Muslim - my mother is Egyptian, my father is Palestinian - my mother only puts a veil on her head when she has a bad hair day.

The concept of the strong linkage to the family is breaking down in Western nations.

The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life.

We are a continuum. Just as we reach back to our ancestors for our fundamental values, so we, as guardians of that legacy, must reach ahead to our children and their children. And we do so with a sense of sacredness in that reaching.

The family is inclusive of not just your genetic family, but the people that you meet along the way.

Family transcends the flesh. You don't love someone because they look like you, you love their spirit; it's the soul connection.

It is possible that strong levels of belief in God, gods, spirits or the supernatural might have given our ancestors considerable comforts and advantages.

Building the future holds more attraction than ancestor worship, whichever ancestor we're talking about.

Everything family does is reflection on the other people.