How to Write a Family Autobiography

Here is a good example of family autobiography:

My name is Ryan, and I am 21 years old. I have two older sisters Brionna and Jessica. My mom is aged 53 and my dad 55. My parents divorced when I was 11 and remarried after a year or so. I stayed with mom until I was 16 before I moved in with my dad. I have been living with my dad since 2013 but still maintaining a good relationship with my whole family. My parents were married for 18 years before the separation and lived in our home in Williamsport PA. After the divorce, dad moved to another place within Williamsport and left us with mum at home. Since the father was the major breadwinner in the house, our lives changed drastically as the mother's salary could not sustain the lifestyle we were used to when the family was integrated. However, despite the challenge that we encountered during this period, our education was not affected as we had insurance cover paid by dad. This proved to us that even though our parents could no longer stay together, they loved us so much as their children. 

My early childhood life was a typical middle-class environment of the 21st century. My dad was working as a state trooper, and my mom was an accountant in a private company. I had a healthy, happy childhood as the last born in the family as my parents would leave me spoiled most of the times. My dad earned more than my mother, and he was the most significant contributor to the family's economic needs. However, he was more concerned about our education and family bills. He ensured that we got the best quality education by buying education policies for us. He was and is still such a caring father. He used to take us out for fun events where we could all eat, drink and have fun. Nonetheless, my dad used to have busy weekdays and thus my mom contributed to household needs such as food and house chores with the help of my elder sisters. She was also responsible for family friendship ties as we used to have his colleagues visit us most weekends. This cohesion and organization made our family the envy of the community as we lived happily together as a family. Our parents encouraged us to ensure that we excelled in our academics to build a better future for ourselves when they are no longer working. Their motivation and involvement in our academic matters made us develop the urge to excel; my two sisters have already made it, and I am confident that I will also do the same in my final exam. 

One of our most reliable family friends was Catherine, my mom's former classmate in college. Our family ties with Catherine was so strong in a way that people could think she was our aunt. One thing I distinctly remember is how she treated me and her son Smith as her children. Any time she visited us she would buy me a bar of chocolate. The way my parents' divided tasks were right because my dad could not get time to do housework due to his busy job. However, my mom did not have a strict job because she worked for six hours per day. Notwithstanding, having mom perform housework roles could be viewed as the social perception about women's position in a family. During family gatherings and events, Cate, as we called her, would always be present to assist mum with chores and planning, a routine that was reciprocated if it happened at her home. Even after the divorce of our parents, cate was there throughout the time to console mother, encourage and motivate her as a good friend. We all loved her actions. 

Before their divorce, power distribution in my family was unequal between my mom and dad. My dad made significant financial decisions since he earned more than my mom. For instance, when mom brought up the idea of buying a new car, my dad advised her that a car could be purchased the following year after Brionna was through with her secondary education. Dad also influenced decisions as to whom could become a family friend because he considered some families not good for our growth. Having studied in Florida for both her secondary and college education, my mom had expert power about the best places we could visit during vacation. However, her proposed location could only be our ultimate destination if dad approved it. We always knew that she did not feel any good when her proposals were turned down and was just there to complement my father's decisions. This would kill her morale and deny her the sense of belonging in the family as an equal parent. She felt that he was using his position as the head of the family to manipulate every aspect of leadership in the family without giving a chance to her immediate deputy at any point to exercise her authority. 

My parents were pretty good in the way they gave my elder sisters freedom and power over what to wear. However, they could not let me decide on myself since I was so young for that. Initially, when I lived with my mom, she could not also let me decide with whom to hang out. But now I am happy that my dad gives me the power to choose the outfit to wear and friends to mingle with. The way my parents shared power reflected the cultural expectations about roles. In American society, it is believed that a man should be financially stable to have control in financial decisions. The power distribution in my family taught me that as a man, I should play a significant role in making critical decisions in the family. It is perceived as a culture since the time of memorial that a man should provide for the family. These ideas were well implemented in my family settings as my dad always worked hard, putting up with long working hours and barely having time for the family at the expense of his job so that he could be in a position to sufficiently provide for the family. 

From what I know, my parents had inherited family dynamics such as gender roles and power distribution from their own families. My grandparents had divided their roles on a gender basis with grandpa dominating my grandma as she was a stay-at-home wife. Also, my parents were trying to avoid some habits that had affected the lives of my grandparents such as acute smoking. My grandma died at the age of 63 from lung cancer that was caused by her smoking nature the whole of her life. Also, my grandpa died at 71 from a heart attack which was also associated with uncontrolled drinking and smoking. None of my parents is a smoker as they learned to avoid such behaviors. Now that I am an adult and approaching the right time to marry, I would love to create a family where my wife and I share roles based on our abilities and avoid being assertive to my wife like my dad is to my mom and stepmom. 

In my family, there are three children. My two sisters Brionna and Jessica are 25 and 28 years respectively. We grew together in a happy family until I was 11 when my parents divorced. My two older sisters are both living with their boyfriends, and they are working. Although Jessica could describe my family in a similar way I would, Brionna would feel that our parents were not caring when they were together. This is more so when my parents were going through the divorce process, and Brionna was in school. She went through a stressing moment more than us who were not in school then. My two sisters were responsible for house chores, and they had a scheduled program for the same. I was so young to be assigned any significant role in the family. 

My mom was 25 and my dad 27 when my elder sister Jessica was born. This was two years or so after mom was through with her college education. My dad had already secured a job as a part-time salesperson with Simpson Buick. At the time they gave birth to Jessica, I can say my parents were not pretty prepared as we were living in a small rental house in Williamsport, PA. However, my parents believed in hard work, and they created everything we own now. Their parenting style was quite good because they ensured that we take part in decisions affecting us directly. This way, we felt that we had a secure life in terms of family cohesion and looked forward to having a more stable home in future filled with joy and love amongst the members. This however changed after the divorce and everyone's role changed to adapt to the new lifestyle. 

My parents asserted power over me when I was young, and I could not decide with whom to hang out or the type of movies to watch. But as I grew, they gave me more freedom, and as I live with dad now, I make major decisions including what book to read and with whom to interact. My parents believed that inculcating self-independence in us is vital for our future success. They ensured we develop values such as autonomy and independence-thinking. Although my dad was not very much religious, my mom used to ensure that we attend church every Sunday. This is what made me grow spiritually, and I am now a staunch Christian. 

Communication with my family is one of the most exciting things. Despite the fact that my parents are divorced, I am happy that they keep us out of their divorce and we hold family meals at the end of every month. During these times, my parents ensure that we feel very important as their children and create a favorable environment for us to share our thoughts. Mom ensures that before we take the meals, we pray together and she asks Jessica or me to lead with prayers. After taking the meal, we all listen to each other as everyone shares their stories and expresses how they would wish my parents could help them. Besides, it is during the get-together meals that my parents discuss with us about sexuality and relationships. I was individually introduced to this topic when I was 13. 

One of the critical crises that I remember is when my family experienced domestic violence. At this time, I was ten and my sister Brionna was 14. My dad had become an alcoholic, and he could fight my mom every time he drunk. This was so depressing to me and my sisters especially Brionna who was in school then. But after going through the counselling process, my dad changed completely and stopped drinking alcohol. However, this led to their divorce. This aspect of my family experience has remained in my mind, and I still find it hard to come in terms with it. Considering that I was a child, witnessing family violence between my parents was such a horrific experience to me. I even remember in high school how some bad friends tried to introduce me to smoking and drinking. However, I remembered how this issue led to my mom and dad divorce. When I moved in with my dad, I changed school and made new friends who helped me to stop the habits completely. Although the family violence I experienced between my dad and mom remains fresh in my mind, I believe if both agreed to seek early intervention such as counselling and be ready to solve the issues, it could not have reached the point of breaking up the family. 

Parents can have a lot of influence on the lives of their children, including their relationships and the choice of people to marry. I am currently in a relationship that has been good for the last two years, and we are still doing well. Although I try a lot to be a man who gives equal power to his fiancé, I seldom find myself trying to dominate critical decisions in our relationship. I usually decide where and when to go out for fun, and at times I have found myself crossing the line into determining the kind of friends my girlfriend should have. I associate this with my experience with my dad who was dominating mom and even the stepmom he is married to currently. Due to this experience, I think giving one's spouse the freedom to make major decisions would strengthen the relationship and make them comfortable, appreciated and have a sense of belonging 

My parents did not influence the choice of the girl I date in any way. My parents taught us to be independent-thinking and gave us the power to decide on what is good for us. However, through my family generations from grandparents to my parents, I have learned that it is better to date a person with whom you have a slight age difference with and a man should be older in a relationship. This factor influenced the choice of the girl I am dating because she is 18 and I am 21. Besides, seeing my mom and dad divorce was not good for me. My attitude towards divorce is that it is not acceptable, and I would not like to part with my wife in a way that children may get affected negatively. Separation is not the best way to go for family. From my experience, after the separation in our family, every aspect of life changed. We lacked the joy and fun we shared as a family and grief reigned for some time before we could finally adapt to the situation. Even though we were able to overcome the situation, I can attest that everything is not the way they used to be when we lived together. For this reason, I will always do my best to ensure cohesion is maintained in my house, which is achieved by effective communication and giving equal chances to the other partner. 

Although some few factors were negative in the way my parents lived, I still had a lot to learn from them. Some part of my personality such as my aggressiveness and being autonomous were all influenced by my parents. My aggressive nature towards making a living is a quality I learned from my dad. He has always made sure that he does everything to provide for his family. Since we were small kids, our parents taught us that being self-independent is so essential to help us succeed in life and become innovative. I highly rate the kind of upbringing I have been raised to since I have seen families separate and the children becoming the subject of the situation. For instance, a neighbor couple back in Williamsport broke up when all their two children were in secondary school and had the aspiration of studying all the way to achieve their dream career, only to have all this shuttered and becoming homeless at some point. Also, the way my parents have maintained a perfect relationship with their children even after their divorce has taught me the importance of keeping children out of separation for their development. This is an ultimate sign of love that dwells in our separated parents for us. Although we could be happier if we were all staying together as a family, we rejoice in knowing that each of my parents is settled in another relationship and comfortable in their ways. 

My relationship with my family is pretty good. Despite growing up with split parents, my parents kept us out of their divorce, and they get along well at events where both of them are present. We regularly meet during the holidays and share a lot about our lives. I visit my siblings often over the weekends to know how they are doing. Whenever I visit mom, she welcomes me well and shares a lot with me. She is happy I have become a grown young man who can take responsibility for his life. My mom always advises me to treat my girlfriend with respect if I want a long healthy relationship with her. I take her advice positive owing that she has been there before us and she knows and understands what makes a band strong and durable. 

I will close this autobiography with one of my currently exciting parts of my relationship. When we grew up, I used to love animals, and I would care for young animals even when their mothers died. Nevertheless, my dad was so strict about the kind of animals to care for and have at home. He complained that I wasted a lot of time playing and caring for animals. Fortunately, I met my girlfriend about three ago, and she is such as a passionate person with animals. Although we are not yet married to have kids, we have a large family of dogs and cats that we treat as our ‘kids.' Most of these animals we have rescued them and bottle-fed some of them from their birth even after their mother's died. This family of dogs and cats act as a strong bond between my fiancé and me. Meeting a person with whom we share a lot is one of the best things in my life. Although we have had some fights before, we normally take therapist approaches to work out the issues. I learned this from my parents' relationship as I knew I had to leave behind some behaviors I experienced while young if I am to have a happy family.