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The Brady Bunch was one of my favorite TV programs when I was growing up. With few exceptions, whatever crisis came up, all was resolved at the end of one 1/2 hour episode. Everyone lived happily ever after until the next show.

Most of the crisis were minor. Marcia is hit with a ball and her nose looks ugly before a big date. Jan takes the ice cream store job away from Marcia. This is not real life.

The difference between my family and the Brady Bunch are like the difference between a rabbit hole and the Grand Canyon. First, we are not a blended family. My husband and I and our eight kids are just a family.

Second, we haven't had too many small crisis in our family. For instance, we've lived in poverty all the time my children were growing up. Day to day we didn't know where the food was coming from or if we would still have a home with lights at the end of the month.

We didn't live in middle class suburbia. We lived in government subsidized housing and occasionally the Ghetto. I didn't have a maid. With all of us trying to live in a 2-4 bedroom house, things were chaotic and cluttered at best.

When we argued it was loud not the "Oh Mike" of Carolyn Brady. We were a real family.

Despite the many disadvantages and hard times we have had, there is one thing that we do have in common with the Brady Bunch. No matter what we had to face or how much we argued; we always had love. We stuck up for each other. We cried with each other. We laughed with each other. We come together (even now that the kids are grown) and help out when any of us are in need. My kids are well respected. All of them have accomplished something with themselves and I am very proud of all of us.

Learn more about this author, Cynthia Harlan.
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