Against his wife’s wishes he summoned his mother to the house, eager to glimpse his newborn granddaughter.
Ethel was a nightmare when it came to communication; she never respected anyone’s boundaries. She never liked Grace, not for any particular fault, simply because he had married her and she could not watch him pull away.
Three weeks earlier Grace had delivered a little girl, Lily.
Ethel insisted on being present in the delivery suite, but Grace wanted only him there. So while Grace was in labour, Ethel stood in the hospital lobby, shouting down the whole wing that she deserved to witness her grandchilds birth.
Whenever Ethel entered their home she clung to every surface and condemned Grace for being a poor housewife, even declaring that Lily would grow up to be a terrible mother.
Those remarks drove Grace to the brink; she issued an ultimatum: Ethels feet would never cross their threshold again. He understood herno one likes to be humiliated in their own home.
When they finally brought Lily home, the grandparents insisted on meeting her.
Grace allowed his mother one visit, on the condition that she keep quiet. Ethel promised to honor the request, but the moment she crossed the doorway a torrent of comments rained down:
Its filthy in here. If you want to live like this, keep living like this. Yet, out of respect for me, you could at least tidy up.
Grace lost control and told her she no longer had any right to visit; Lily could be seen only if they permitted it.
Nearly two weeks passed; the inlaws had met Lily, and his father had also visited. Yet Ethel still did not appear, and Grace refused to see her. They never left the house with the baby, for the world outside felt too bleak.
The day before yesterday Grace had a doctors appointment, and he stayed at home with Lily. He took the chance to invite Ethel to see the baby. She arrived, and he warned her they had only two hours before Grace would return. She refused to leave, no matter how hard he pleaded.
Grace returned, found Ethel cradling Lily, and suffered a complete nervous breakdownshe screamed at both of them, demanding Ethel vacate the house.
In his mind he told Grace to shut up and calm down, reminding her it was his house and his baby, and if he wanted his mother to see Lily she could not forbid it or throw her out.
Grace finally pushed both him and Ethel out, refusing to speak to either of them. He now lives with his parents, hoping Grace will find peace again.
