They say family is everything—
A haven when the world turns cold,
A soft place where weary souls fall,
Where calming hands soothe worried heads,
And love is supposed to wrap us whole.

But love here is a double-edged lullaby,
Sung sweetly with a bitter tongue.
Dramas bloom like wildfires,
And the walls remember every fight,
Even when the silence pretends to forget.

Can peace live where tension breathes?
Where hugs feel rehearsed,
And kindness comes with rules?
When a sigh can spark an argument,
Is it home or a house of thorns?

We say parents love, and children too
But when truth is seen as rebellion,
And emotion is met with "don’t talk back,"
How do we call that understanding?
What does respect really mean?

Comparison is the family heirloom
Polished and passed around at dinner.
Why can't you be like her? Be more like him?
Praise is rationed, affection delayed,
While bonding visits like a distant cousin.

Secrets are tucked beneath trembling tongues,
Because honesty has consequences here.
What you say today might betray you tomorrow,
So fear builds a fortress around the heart,
And vulnerability dies in its sleep.

So tell me... what is family really?
Is it love wrapped in tradition's chains?
Is it fear dressed as structure?
Is it warmth? Is it war? Or just…
A name we carry, heavy and unsure?