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The Power of Positive Thinking
A little experiment in personal perseverance — Day 3
I did something today that I think my father would have been proud of. I shut his brother up.
Okay, let me set the scene. I have an uncle, my last living line to my father’s side of the family. He’s 85 years old and your typical grumpy old man. He is also convinced that the only way he can be truly happy is if he has a woman at his side. It drives me nuts.
A couple of years ago, my uncle and I became quite close. He and his then-wife had just split up. I never met the woman, and it’s probably a good thing. She wouldn’t have liked me. They got married quickly, and she ended up taking him for just about everything he had. And it left him bitter.
At this same time, my husband and I had called it quits. I was devastated and didn’t know which way to turn. It took some time, but I managed to get back on my feet and out on my own, with a grandchild in tow.
As I was beginning to gain traction, my uncle became angrier. The more I tried to get him to calm down, the worse he’d get. It got to the point that right before the first Thanksgiving in my new place, he almost ended up in jail for assault. He decided to get out of town for a while, and I didn’t hear from him again for about six months.
