Birthdays are special to Janisse. She thus wishes to throw a lavish dinner party at home for her husband’s birthday, complete with relatives and friends. However, when her mother-in-law arrives and assumes command, things rapidly get out of hand.
My birthdays have always held special meaning for me. After I got married, I started looking forward to my husband Carl’s birthday celebrations. I thus wanted to do something at home for Carl’s birthday this year with all of our family and friends. All I wanted to do was congratulate him with a formal dinner.
Sally, Carl’s mother, however, had other plans for the evening.
The day before, my mother-in-law dropped over so she could assist me with all the cooking. I got along well with Carl’s family and they had always been kind to me, so I didn’t mind.
Or at least that was my belief.
In any case, that day Sally and I were cooking like crazy. Later that afternoon, she began to rummage through the refrigerator and let out a sigh every few minutes. I asked her what was wrong, of course.
The ingredients for the cookies I wanted to prepare are nowhere to be found. Sally added, “I told you I would make Carl the cookies I make every year.”
“We have a ton of sweets, including cake. In my opinion, it’s fine. I said to her, “We can do it for him another day.
“Janisse,” Sally croaked out. I mean, it’s very essential to me. I began Carl on this ritual when he was just three years old. Could you please fetch the ingredients outside?
See, normally, I would have declined. I needed to finish arranging the table, take a shower, and get dressed because there was still a lot of work to be done. To be fair, the food shop wasn’t far away, so I reasoned that she probably valued it much.
I said, “Okay, I’ll go outside and get everything.”
I want to get home in time for Sally to bake it on time and organize everything else, so I dash through the grocery store shoving stuff into the basket. Feeling like a superhero, I suppose I was a part of this birthday custom as I made my way home.
That was only a fleeting high.
Carl stormed out of the house like I’d done a crime and he intended to catch me in the act the moment I opened the vehicle door. He begins to yell at me, hurling accusations across our yard. Because I left his mom alone to handle everything, he accused me of abandoning his mother and spoiling his birthday celebration.
I enter the house and open every grocery bag. There is no sign of Sally. When the guests come, I carry on arranging the table and tidying up the kitchen.
I hurried to my bedroom to take a shower and change since I knew I looked like a disaster. As I stood there in the shower, I felt as though a wrecking ball of confusion had struck me. I was full of questions.
How did I act? Why was I being held responsible for something that seemed like a storyline from a soap opera? And while I was in the shop, what in the world did I miss?
I changed quickly and returned to our terrace to serve the meal and say hello to the visitors. Carl stayed away from me much of the night, giving me nothing but shady stares. Sally paid no attention to me at all.
It appears that Mrs. Sally Hudson had a very elaborate scheme. She sent me out for shopping simply to make some drama. Tradition didn’t exist. Her daughter-in-law was out shopping and didn’t seem to care that her husband’s birthday was approaching, so she just wanted the guests to arrive and herself to be the host.
My mother-in-law even brought out the birthday cake and sang to Carl about it.
I attempted to explain everything to Carl after the visitors had departed and Sally had gone to bed, but he seemed uninterested in listening. That was not something he would have accepted from his mother. Furthermore, he believed that my belief in the “cookie tradition” was foolish.
However, Karma made the decision to join the group the following day. Sally unintentionally emailed Carl the complete message in her attempt to boast about her brilliant scheme.
I was hiding from them in our bedroom when he came in and raised his phone.
In a low voice, he continued, “You were right.”
“Relative to what?” I enquired.
Carl gave me the phone, which was sufficient evidence for us.
Carl then went to speak with her in the living room. It turns out that my beliefs about religion and family were the reason she didn’t like me, and she was using the entire drama as a puppet show.
Carl and I did forgive her eventually, but it took some time.
I informed him, “Next year, we’re celebrating your birthday in Bali.” “No family, no friends, and no drama at all!”
She may not be over anything or like me, in my opinion. But I’ll do all in my power to keep things amicable, as I told Carl.
That concluded Carl’s birthday drama.
Which drama have you had from your in-laws?