Climate Change
written by: Cheryl Snell
When the in-laws invited us to see their time-share, I imagined there would be a place to sit, a little cabin, or even a tent with some chairs. “There’s a picnic table over there.” My husband jerked his hitchhiker thumb to where the family was assembled. OK, I thought. A bench will do.
Turns out I didn’t fit in there any better than I did anyplace else with these folks. The have-nots are always jealous of the haves, my mother always said. They will diminish you. I thought she was being a snob, and besides, I wasn’t going to marry Dan or anything.
The only reason I finally did was because he wore me down. I broke up with him because he cheated on me and then I began to see someone else. Dan was always lurking, trying to make up with me in his big, goofy way. Once he even bought me a puppy. Anyway, my rebound romance fizzled after a few months and it was Dan’s turn to be the rebound guy. At least his dad put his dentures in for the ceremony.
My mother-in-law pats the seat next to her, but before I can sit down, Dan’s brother comes at me like a football player and tosses me in the air like one of the water balloons the kids are playing with.
“Did he scare you? Your face turned completely white,” Dan whispers. The storm that had been following us breaks overhead. There is no shelter. We have to crowd into the brother’s big truck, all of us. “Let’s wait it out in our own car,” I say. Dan says nothing. “Let’s just go home,” I try again. No response from my husband. “I want a divorce,” I say, loud enough for everyone to hear.
- Climate Change - January 3, 2025
- Dissolution - August 26, 2024
- Deep Freeze - February 2, 2024
