Season 2, episode 10
Hello and welcome to season 2 of Simple Stories in English. I love my family. I have two wonderful sons that I adore. I also have many brothers and sisters who are very important to me, along with my own mom and dad. My extended family also has a special place in my heart. Continuing with this season of personal stories, this episode explores the question: “what is my family like?”.
Important vocabulary in the story includes: older, younger, son, siblings, nieces, nephews, and grandparents.
What is my Family Like?
What is my family like? My family is the center of my life. I connect with someone from my family every day. My family is divided in groups. There is the family that lives in my house, which consists of my children; the family I was born into, which consists of my siblings and parents; and my extended family, which includes nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles and grandparents. Another important family group for me is my ancestors, or my deceased family members.
The most important members of my family are the two boys that live in my house. They are my sons, John and Emmett.
Emmett is my oldest son. He is 14 years old. He is tall. He is taller than me! Emmett has brown hair like me and blue eyes like his dad.
The adjective that best describes Emmett is creative. He likes to paint. He has a poster of Bob Ross in his bedroom. He watches his videos on YouTube and he uses his techniques to make “happy trees” on original paintings. Sometimes he draws, but he prefers painting. Emmett has a lot of Legos. He is always building something. He prefers building big trucks or robots. Sometimes he and I build scenes or buildings together because I like Legos a lot too.
Emmett has a lot of interests. Like many kids, he likes playing video games. He plays with his friends, his brother, his cousin and with me. One summer, Emmett played baseball and later he played basketball. He decided he doesn’t really like sports. Now Emmett plays the trombone in the concert band and jazz band at his school.
Emmett is fun and I like to spend time with him. I used to read to him every night, but now we talk instead. I know that these moments won’t last forever and that very soon he is not going to want my affection, so I enjoy every moment.
John is my youngest son. He is 11 years old. His hair is blonde and curly. He has blue eyes and big ears. He is famous for saying “the end” at the end of my podcast.
The adjective that best describes John is curious. He likes outer space. He received a telescope for Christmas. He likes to look at the stars and learn about the planets. He is frustrated because Pluto isn’t a planet anymore. He likes learning about the nations of the world and the states in the United States. He reads books about the presidents. His favorite presidents are Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt.
Like his brother Emmett, John has many interests. He plays video games with his brother, friends, and me. He plays with Legos and makes stop-motion videos. He likes to draw and I have some of his drawings in my classroom. John also likes to write. He is a very good writer. I think John is a good writer because he is also a good reader. John likes to read book series like Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, and Alcatraz and the Evil Librarians.
In my home it is just my sons and I, but my family is much bigger than only the three of us.
I have five sisters. I have three older sisters and two younger sisters. My sisters are kind and beautiful women. My sisters and I are very active. We like to be outdoors. When we are together we walk in the desert, the woods or the mountains. My sisters are intelligent and hard-working. They are engineers, managers, teachers, and mothers.
Unfortunately, my sisters don’t live close to my home. We are not physically close because we live in four different states, but we are spiritually close and we connect with technology. My sisters are my best friends. When I have a problem, I just call one of my sisters. They listen and are very understanding. They have good ideas and experiences that help me in my life.
I don’t just have sisters. I also have brothers. I have four brothers. I have one older brother and three younger brothers. Like my sisters, my brothers live in different states. Unlike my sisters, we are not particularly close. We call each other sometimes and we send photos and texts.
With all of these kids, my parents are special people. My mother is named Betty and my dad is named John. They like being grandparents and spending time with their grandchildren in person and on video. They also like being parents. My youngest brother has Downs Syndrome and will always live with them. They are very loving and patient with him.
My parents don’t work now and spend their days thinking about family. My mother does activities with my brother like putting together puzzles and cooking. She makes cookies with the grandchildren that live near her. She writes postcards to her grandchildren that live far away. My dad spends his time with his ancestors. My dad looks for information and documents about the deceased members of our family. We know a lot about our ancestors thanks to my father’s work and that of his sister, my aunt.
My extended family consists of 5 cousins, 3 aunts, 2 uncles, 11 nieces and 5 nephews. Unfortunately, my grandmothers both died in a year ago and both of my grandfathers died many years ago. I miss my extended family. We don’t see each other often as we live very far apart.
Finally, there are my ancestors. Since I live in the United States, the majority of my ancestors are immigrants, although there is one woman from the Lakota Sioux tribe in my family tree. My ancestors are mostly from Sweden, England, Ireland, and Germany. Their histories are fascinating and I love finding artifacts about their lives.
Family is important to me. Being with my family is the most meaningful part of my day. It is the most meaningful part of my whole life. I am grateful for all of my family.
And you? Who is a part of your family? Do you have children? Grandchildren? Siblings? Nieces and nephews? What do you do with your family? What is your family like?
The End.
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