My definition of family is a group of people who are together as mom, dad, kids, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. In my family, even close friends are relatives, because we all love each other and want to spend as much time together as we can. In my immediate family, I am the second of three kids. My role is to be the encouraging older sister and the annoying little sister at the same time.

My family is unique for many reasons, but most of all because when I was six, we adopted a baby boy who is now my younger brother, Ben. From my point of view, my family is just like any other. We live together, play together, go to school together, love each other, and, of course, fight with each other. My parents expect me to be kind to my siblings, but it is hard to manage this when they are mean to me. I like being the middle child because I have someone to watch over me and also have a younger sibling whom I can boss around.

One of the coolest things about my family is that we share two religious beliefs, because we’re both Jewish and Christian. That means we have lots of traditions. We also made a new tradition by including everyone to combine the holidays. For example, we decorate our Christmas tree with my Israeli savta (grandma), and we eat latkes on Hanukah with my Italian family.  We believe in the whole Bible, not just parts. That makes me feel special and unique. How many kids do you know who celebrate both?

My family makes me who I am today because of the love and care they give me. I also know my parents work really hard so that I can go to S.I.A., and if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have the friends I do today. My parents have inspired me to adopt a child when I am older, but until then, I want to stick with making meals for my family because that is one of my passions.  My favorite dish is baked cinnamon tortilla chips.  I invented the recipe myself.  Everyone enjoys them.  I may own a restaurant someday and be its chef.  I will call it Juju’s Café.

Juliette W. (Grade 6)