This weekend Lisa and I went to the family reunion of my father’s family. Okay, family reunions probably aren’t that big of a deal to most people, but due to the odd circumstances that followed after my parents’ divorce, these were people I hadn’t seen in 25 years or so.
Then out of the blue I get a call from one of my Great Aunt’s asking if I’d like to come to the family reunion. A paper flier ensues and the next thing I know I’m uncomfortably trying to make small talk with people who for a number of reasons I didn’t really spent too much time with as a child, and then not at all since around the time I was 13 or so.
The really odd thing about being in the middle of this sort of situation is how people perceive you. I happen to have a very close relationship with, shall we say, the instigator of our little family feud, and people tend to assume that must mean I agree with or at least have some sympathy with this person’s antics, which could not be further from the truth.
My Great Aunt was apparently a bit concerned that she might not get a friendly reception when she called me.
Anyway the lesson is that family feuds really suck, especially when you’re just one degree from the epicenter of the confrontation. Unfortunately, sometimes people who create these situations really are irreasonable and intractable and there’s not much you can do about it.