Chapter 5: Drawing the Line

Originally, whatever issues we sisters had could be talked out, but Eric still didn’t know when to stop: [The main thing I’m saying today isn’t about money. If you all agree to let my mom take grandma to D.C., what if my mom runs off with some random guy in D.C., or grandma suddenly dies there? Your three families will be fully responsible.]

[Mom, Jessica said it today too—if you dare take grandma to D.C., don’t come back to our house.]

He was stirring the pot, raising the stakes, making everything sound more dramatic than it ever needed to be. I wondered if he even understood how much damage he was doing.

I’ve always kept my dignity among my sisters. Even though my husband died young, I gritted my teeth and raised my child alone, never showing weakness in front of my sisters. But now, at this age, I’m being scolded by my own son, finger pointed at my head.

It stung in a way I couldn’t put into words. My sisters knew my story—how I’d kept the lights on, how I’d made Christmas happen year after year. I’d never asked for pity, only respect.

The emotions that had just begun to calm surged up again. I spoke directly in the group: [Since all my sisters are here, help me bear witness. It’s Eric, this ungrateful wolf, who says he doesn’t want this mother. From now on, we’ll live our own separate lives.]

My hands shook as I hit ‘send,’ but my heart felt lighter for the first time in days. Sometimes you have to draw your own boundaries—even if it means letting go of the people you love most.

As I watched the typing bubbles flicker and fade, I realized this trip wasn’t just for Mom—it was for me, too. And tomorrow, come hell or high water, we were going to D.C.