Actor Michael J Fox once said that family was not an important thing, it was everything! This is certainly true as we start out in life. Our families are our first introduction to life, our first experience of this earthly world. So, they are indeed important. Our first instincts are shaped by what we experience in the womb, and then as we are birthed into this world, our relationship with our mother, father and then the rest of the family. Families also come in all shapes and sizes - two-parent families, single-parent families, blended families and so on. Decisions are made for us by family members before we are born. Events occur in our parents' lives before we are born. These all affect our private emotional world and how we respond to the outer world. Astrology can shed light on what these experiences are likely to be, how they shape us and how we can move into adulthood and form our own healthy home and family life, a private life that sustains our individual needs.