1) The document discusses how family crises, like the author's parents' separation, can be difficult but provide opportunities for personal growth. 2) When the author's parents announced their decision to separate, the author was initially shocked and wanted the family to stay together, but later realized their relationship had issues and separation was best. 3) Going through this hardship helped the author become more understanding, empathetic, and able to remain calm during difficult times.

1. Insight Through Crisis
Sometimes during hard times one feels like the world is going to fall apart and we
cannot do anything about it. Usually these situations arise unexpectedly, right in the
moment when one is convinced that things could not be better; and one has to face the truth.
One of these unexpected and hard situations, and perhaps the one that could affect us more,
could be family crisis. I say that it could affect us because our family is that group of
people that may be the most important for us. They are the ones with whom you had been
raised, they are always there to support you, they share a lot of great memories and
moments that you are going to treasure for the rest of your life, and finally, even if the rest
of the world rejects you, your family will always accept you no matter what. Being so
important, if our family is in crisis, we ourselves will be in crisis. This of course is a very
hard time, but it is also a time when one can learn and gain experience that can be helpful
for taking decisions in life. In this way, we take advantage of the situation and could be less
affected by it, like in my case, when my parents decided to put an end to their marriage.
When my parents came to me and to let me know of their determination I was
shocked. At that time it never went through my mind that our “normal” family life could
end like this. I remember that I had seen many of my friends whose parents were separated
and thought that such a thing could never happen to me, but there I was living trough the
same situation. My wish was that our family would stick together no matter what, maybe
because I was afraid that we turned into one of the many separated families that, once torn
apart, never again maintain the same level of connection they once had. Then, when I took
a moment to reflect on the situation, I realized that I was only thinking about myself and
was not looking at the reasons for my parents’ separation.
The reality is that our “normal” family was not as normal as I believed. My parents
were having many issues from a long time before they decide to live separated lives. At
times the fight turned kind of violent, but thankfully no one was injured, physically,
because I’m pretty sure they both were, but emotionally. So it was quite clear that for them
life as a couple was no longer possible, and even I understood that very well. For this
reason sometimes I feel kind of silly when remembering how egocentric of me was to think
that they should not separate and tear the family apart, but later on learned to see the bright
side of the situation.
Even though I did not want my parents to separate, soon I realized that this was the
best thing for everyone. Currently they have a cordial relationship, and they both take good

2. care of me and my two siblings. As for me, well this difficult situation taught me to be
understanding and empathic towards other people, the same thing I did when understanding
the reasons for my parents’ situation. Another thing that I learned was to remain calm and
stoic, even though the hardest of times. During this difficulty I did my best to keep my
good grades and to carry on with my way of life. This also served as a good example for
my two little siblings to fallow, and they both remained calm during the whole problem. I
can say that, even though that at first the separation seemed to be something bad, right now
I see it as a thing that was necessary for me to grow and become a more mature individual.