People love to throw around the word “family” like it cancels out everything that came before it, but just because her dad married the woman he cheated with doesn’t mean that woman gets to show up like nothing happened.
She stood up and protected her mom’s dignity and the one moment she was supposed to feel celebrated. If her dad wanted a warm group photo, he probably should’ve started by not blowing up the family in the first place.
This 25-year-old woman recently graduated from grad school, and her entire family was excited to take photos with her when the ceremony was finished.
Her dad arrived on her graduation day with his new wife in tow. Now, her mom and dad had an ugly divorce three years ago after her dad cheated on her mom with a 40-something-year-old woman, whom he married less than a year after the divorce.
Her mom hates her dad’s affair partner/new wife, as do she and her siblings. So, back to her graduation day; she and her family began lining up to take family photos, and she had her grandparents, mom, and siblings in attendance.
“Dad tries to pull his wife into the ‘family’ pics, and I just kinda blurted out, ‘No, these are family pics, you’re not welcome in them,'” she explained.
“It came out way harsher than I meant TBH, but like… I didn’t wanna force my mom to stand next to the woman who blew up her marriage. That felt messed up.”
“Dad got all [angry], his wife looked like I slapped her. He texted me later, saying I embarrassed him in front of everyone and disrespected his wife. He keeps saying, ‘She’s family now,’ and I need to accept it.”
Her mom actually said thank you to her for putting her dad’s wife in her place, and it made her mom feel a big sense of relief. One of her siblings actually weighed in too, insisting she did the right thing, while her other sibling is worried she made the situation with her dad’s new wife even worse.
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She felt that since it was her graduation day and photos, she had the ability to be exclusive when it came down to who was standing there next to her.
Perhaps she should have been quieter when she said what she did to her dad’s new wife instead of doing it in front of the whole family.
“Now, dad’s barely talking to me, and his wife is apparently ‘hurt.’ So yeah… [am I the jerk] for telling my dad’s new wife she’s not welcome in family pictures?” she wondered.
Honestly, I think her dad’s the jerk here for dragging his new wife along and expecting her to welcome this woman with open arms.
Her dad’s wife might be hurt, but so was the entire family when she blew up their lives. If protecting her mom and standing her ground made things uncomfortable, good. Some people should be uncomfortable. That’s what happens when you break a family and still expect a smile for the camera.
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By Bre Avery Zacharski
Hi, I'm Bre, Chip Chick's CEO! I have a degree in Textile/Surface Design from The Fashion Institute of Technology, and... More about Bre Avery Zacharski
