Its been a fortnight since I last visited my little garden retreat, and to my utter disbelief, the neighbours
Let someone else choose you, Blythe says softly, standing over Daniels bedside, her eyes cold as she
I spent two years away in France, and when I finally came back to my native Yorkshire I discovered that
My mother regards looking after her granddaughter as something she simply cannot do. All my friends have
I keep to myself, I dont invite anyone over, and I dont share my crops or my toolsaround the village
The elderly lady told me that it had been more than six years since she last set eyes on her son.
Get out of my house! I snapped at my motherinlaw as she started her usual round of insults.
Wed sold them the house. We have the right to stay for a week, the owners insisted. It was 1975 when
12December2025 Dear Diary, Im 37 now and have been single for a decade, ever since James left me.
For about a year, my son had been living with Kate, yet we’d never met her parents—which seemed odd to me, so I decided to look into it
I’ve always tried to raise my son to respect women above all—the women in his life: his grandmother, his mother, his wife, his daughter. In my opinion, there’s no finer quality in a man than respect for women. My husband and I made sure our son had an excellent upbringing and education, equipping him with everything he’d need for a smooth journey through life. We never wanted to help him out too much, but even so, we bought him a two-bedroom flat. Although he had a job and supported himself, he couldn’t quite afford a home of his own.
We didn’t give him the flat right away—in fact, we didn’t even tell him we’d bought it. And why? Our son was living with his girlfriend, after all. For about a year, our son had been sharing his life with Kate, but we’d never met her parents, and I found that strange.
Later, I discovered that Kate’s mother used to be a neighbour of one of my friends. She told me something that left me with a bad feeling. It turns out Kate’s mother threw her husband out when his income dropped—but the real drama was only just beginning… The mother then started seeing a married, but wealthy man. Kate’s grandmother, like her daughter, also had a relationship with a married man, and even forced both her daughter and granddaughter to go work on his country estate.
Because of all this, my son had already had multiple run-ins with his future mother-in-law. But what unsettled me most about this story is that both the mother and grandmother were driving a wedge between Kate and her father.
It’s clear the girl loves her dad, but because of these two women, her relationship with him is at risk. And to top it all off, Kate has decided to drop out of her studies. She believes a man should provide for the family. I see her point—I’ve raised my son to do just that—but heaven forbid they ever face hardship. Who’s to say what will happen if life throws them a curveball? How will she support her husband in tough times? By the way, I transferred the flat back into my name, since I know I’ve raised a gentle soul, as the saying goes. And yes, everything acquired before marriage isn’t split in a divorce—but I have a feeling Kate is clever enough to leave my ‘gentleman’ with nothing but his socks. Its been about a year now that my son has been living with Emily, but wed never met her family.
