What is family

Hello friends,
This week has been one of reflection. Reflection on the idea of family, somewhat spurred by advent, in addition to my own life journey.
I realized this week I am am battling some homesickness. This is not something I have previously experienced, so not really sure how to acknowledge and embrace it. I am feeling these emotions as I wrestle with what is home. I have some definite thoughts as to what is home and family, which are usually fluid. For most of my life home has been the place I sleep at, and this still fits, but I am also longing for something deeper. Usually home is a place of stability, this has not always been true in my childhood or adolesence. As I wrestle with the idea of family, I am serving youth who have been through traumatic experiences at the hands of their family. I see how the youth become a family among themselves, a surrogate family if you will, primarily focused on the role of brother and sister.
I have built this around myself, not always by choice but necessity. Often given the lack of adults our clients interact with, we serve as the parents. While we do not judge a clients' actions, we educate them in understanding the consequences of their actions, both good and bad. The last two days, I have spoken with different clients who make compromise their health to make money. While I disagree with their actions, I speak with them about why they choose to do so. I get to know their story. We talk about other options. One client honestly shared, she chooses this to remind her that she has value. We talk about other ways to seek out attention in healthy, safer ways. I also encourage her to practice safe sex to reduce her risk.
I am learning that "family" is what you make it. That the definition of family is continually changing on an individual level. That blood relation does not equal family, but rather a mutual love and concern for one another's well-being.