Two days after meeting my sister, my mother called.
She said she wanted to have dinner at her house.
She said it would be nice to see me and my son.
I asked whether my father would be there.
She said yes.
I asked whether he was ready to talk about what he had said.
There was a pause.
She told me he didn't want another argument.
I said neither did I.
But avoiding an argument wasn't the same as repairing what had happened.
My mother sighed.
She said he was still upset about the bank accounts.
I told her the accounts were no longer the issue.
The voicemail was.
She said she would speak to him.
I didn't agree to dinner.
I told her I would think about it.
After the call, I told my husband what she had said.
He asked whether I wanted to go.
I said I wanted my son to have a relationship with his grandparents if it could be healthy.
But I didn't want him sitting at a dinner table where people acted as if nothing had happened.
My husband agreed.
That evening, my mother sent a message.
She said my father would be willing to speak with me.
She didn't say he would apologize.
I read the message carefully.
Then I replied that I was willing to have a conversation, but I wouldn't bring my son into the middle of it.
My mother said she understood.
I put the phone away.
The next morning, my father hadn't contacted me.
I didn't chase him.
I went about our day.
I packed my son's lunch.
I checked his homework.
I answered work messages.
I made dinner.
The ordinary things continued.
And I was beginning to understand that my life didn't have to stop whenever my family became unhappy with me.
Click here to continue reading: PART 20: My Father Finally Agreed to Speak, but I Knew an Explanation Was Not the Same as an Apology
Fourteen Seconds Was All It Took for My Father to Tell Me Exactly Where I Stood in His Life
Part 19 of 20
