I felt a lot of nostalgia going through old photos of my extended family at our Adirondack cabin, yet there was a lot of abuse and simmering resentment underneath those scenes. I didn't know any of that as a child, and there was love and beauty there too. I wonder if my current tendency to leave relationships which include significant irritations means I miss out on the potential for net positives? Without anything like the family ties which forced everyone to find ways to spend time together, maybe I give up too quickly. But then, the line between abuse and annoyance can be hard to see when you're living it, and some of the things I know now permanently twisted some of my family members' lives.