But in the early days it was with Joe she would sit and talk, pouring out her feelings to him while the frenetic world of the Kennedy' whirred past her in the shape of touch football and many other fiercely competitive sports. Fondly watching Jack demonstrating his athletic prowess she refused to become involved in the rough and tumble of the infamous games having received an injury in one of her first attempts to join in. Instead she was happy to sit with Joe, paint or read her poetry or history. Her sister in laws made no effort to hide their dismay at Jacks choice. She was unlike anyone they had ever met and they were at odds to find out what had attracted their brother to her in the first place. They mocked her interests, her dress sense, the fact that she took herself so seriously and generally managed to exclude her in many ways.

This trend continued throughout her courtship and early marriage. When she had sadly lost her first baby and miscarried with her second she was in despair, feeling more of a failure as at that time Jacks sisters and sisters in law were giving birth to their children and she felt her loss even more.

It would be during the years of the Presidency that the Kennedy family would truly come to appreciate Jackie. They admired her elegance and sense of culture, her good taste and sense of occasion. They like Jack had come to respect and admire Jackie for her sense of self and watched wide-eyed as the American public fell in love with her. They sensed what an asset she was becoming and envied the rich admiration she received and the esteem that was felt for her not alone throughout the country but throughout the world. Quite simply she was a hit. While Jack was admired for his wit and charisma and apparent openness, Jackie being somewhat aloof and mysterious created her own aura, eventually granting her the status of an Icon, but in those days it just added to an already increasing level of interest in her.

Her love for Jack was never in question and this was always in evidence whether at home with family and friends or as the couple dazzled in Washington. She was devastated when Jacks father Joe had a stroke that was to leave him incapacitated for the remaining years of his life. Sensitive to his needs and his frustrations she would help to feed him, rub his withered hands and sit and talk gently with him, continuing to seek his advice as though to reassure him that he were still the head of the household. She ensured that his grandchildren were unafraid to hug and kiss him, leading them by example. Jacks family appreciated her love of their father and her absolute loyalty and devotion to him.

Sadly as she had won her coveted place within the family of her husband he was taken from her by an assassin's bullet in an act of madness. She had been confident that in the months ahead they would enjoy their happiest time together in their ten-year marriage. The family had watched the couple grow and mature through the years at the White House and it was with sadness and desperation they reached out to her in the months after the assassination as she tried to come to terms with her terrible grief and move on for her children's sake.

Though her relationship with Jacks brothers had grown over the years the bond was now strengthened and her relationships with each man were deep and lasting. She enjoyed Ted's good humour and Bobby's quiet sensitivity and their friendships would endure in the long years ahead after Jacks death. Her relationships with her sister in laws had improved over the years and as they witnessed her absolute desolation and grief at her terrible loss they reached out to her to provide comfort and understanding in those dark days. Her protection of Jack in the years ahead and her resolution that his memory would be honoured had endeared her to his sisters who felt his loss greatly and respected her strength and dignity in the years ahead as negative stories about Jack broke in the media.

Ironically it would be in the years after the assassination that she would begin to build a strong relationship with Jacks mother Rose, who had reached out to Jackie when her decision to marry Aristotle Onassis had shocked and disappointed the world.
She gave Jackie her backing, wishing her happiness and even travelled to Greece on occasion to stay with Jackie.

Difficult as the early years with the Kennedy family had been for Jackie it is a tribute to their family ties and affection that in her last days each one of her former in laws kept vigil at her bedside and wept tears for the brave woman they had known for over forty years. Her families decision to bury her beside President Kennedy only confirms her true love for him confirms too that despite her second marriage and her single life she had remained a Kennedy for the thirty one years after his death in the same way as she had been at the time of her marriage.