Family

Q: Do you have a large family? A: Not huge, but not tiny either — my parents, one younger sister, and then a fairly wide circle of aunts, uncles and cousins we see a few times a year. Immediate family is small and close; extended family is the bit that only really comes together for weddings and holidays. I think that's fairly typical where I'm from. Q: Who are you closest to? A: Probably my sister, even though we're quite different people. We ended up closer as adults than we were as kids, oddly — I think there was less rivalry once we weren't both living under the same roof competing for the same attention. We talk most days now, usually about nothing important. Q: Do you spend much time together? A: With my parents and sister, yes, fairly regularly — a weekly call at minimum, plus visits when schedules allow. The wider family is more occasional, mostly big gatherings a couple of times a year. I'd say quality over frequency describes it better than any fixed schedule would. Q: Have families changed in your country? A: Quite noticeably, yes. Households used to be bigger, often with grandparents living under the same roof, and now it's much more common for people to live independently and see extended family less often. Some of that's economic — smaller flats, people moving for work — and some of it's just changing expectations about privacy and independence. I don't think it's necessarily worse, just different.