Who Supports You?

So I am a HUGE Grey's Anatomy fan. To the point that occasionaly I jot down the dialogue from the beginning and end of an episode because Shonda Rhimes is just that AMAZING. Reading through them today and this one caught my eye:

"The human body is made up of systems that keep you alive. There is the one that keeps you breathing, and the one that keeps you standing. The one that makes you hungry and the one that makes you happy; they are all connected. Take a piece out and everything else falls apart; and it is only when our support system looks like they might fail us, that we realize how much we have depended on them all along. "

Having a support system is probably the most valuable thing you can ever have in life. Growing up it's safe to say your support system is your family. You might hate them at times, but tell me your parents didn't have your back when your "friend" told everyone at school who you had a crush on, or when you forgot your backpack in the car and they had to drive all the way back to school to bring it to you. They had your back, they were there for you. In a perfect world it would just be them forever. But eventually the drama just becomes too much for them to handle. By high school they can't keep track of who your best friend is this week, let alone what they are saying to everyone else about you. That's when friends start becoming your support system. They may only have your back one day of the week (the day your besties, obvi) but chances are someone in the group always has your back. Luckily  for me I had that same best friend seven days a week (most weeks), always willing to shoot someone a death stare on my behalf, or convince me I was better than that guy anyways. She was (and always will be) one of my strongest support systems.
Once college hit it felt like the support system of my parents was more financial and theoretical than anything else (keep reading mom and dad, I will redeem myself). My friends were the ones who were there for me. They gave the best advice on weather or not to go to class, and they certainly had the best input on who I should date. Until they didn't, then it was your boyfriend who knew best. Why would you ever think your friends knew you better than him?! (does sarcasm come across in blogs?). Until you broke up, and your friends were right all along. And that was the perpetual cycle.
Then you grow up. That's the part I'm in now. And here is what I have come to realize; my parents are my support system because they are my parents. I make decisions that they don't agree with, and do things knowing full well it doesn't follow the advice they have given me. But I do that because it's my life, and they are my support system, not my conscience. I do it because I know at the end of the day, even when it looks like they might fail  me, they won't. My friends are my support system because they are my friends. I don't always listen to their advice because I am stubborn and set in my ways. But they are my support system, not my conscience, and even when I make the same dumb decision for the millionth time, they will drag my butt off the floor, say "I told you so," and lift me right back up again. Even at that moment when I think they will look at me and tell me they are tired of picking up the pieces, that they aren't going to have my back anymore; they never do, they never fail me. So even though there are days I think going without that system that makes you hungry wouldn't be such a shame (and might actually help my diet), I know for sure that without my support system, I might as well just call it quits. Good thing I picked some good ones!