Who you call family is about respect in relationships.

Relationships that are blood-related or not. Welcomed or not. Tolerated or not. No family is perfect and there are limits to "family" which will cause individuals a need to avoid the blood of family due to trauma, abuse, neglect, boundaries, fundamental disagreements, lack of respect, and value conflict. All of these factors will cause one to redefine family, and rightfully so. You do not have to feel guilty, you have your reasons, and you are validated in this alone. You owe no one an explanation or reason.

What makes a family is more. Much more.

I agree. I have a very large family and very few are blood.

My wife's family is still my family and I would do anything for them even though she has been gone for almost four years now.
Talk to my MIL every couple of weeks to let her know how I am dong and get updates on the rest of her kids.
She is 96 and still sharp as a tack.

Friends you can choose, family you are stuck with.

Amen

Yes. I am sorry about your wife. So sorry. Enjoy your family!

You're half right.

Yes. Some around this time have feelings of guilt for a need to go no contact. Please know that those who need to, do so with reason.

Depends on what "stuck" means. This thread is not about tolerating aunt Edna's jello. It's about fundamentally damaged relationships for a host of reasons.

Tolerance is not a one-way street, and eventually, the tolerable becomes intolerable without respect which is the basis for relationships of all types.

Having the courage to separate on good moral terms and reasons is the hard part.