Chapter 15 - The guests stop laughing
Birthday guests began calling.
One cousin:
“I thought the dog food was your idea.”
“No.”
“Brian said you like dark humor.”
“I do.”
“Not that?”
“Apparently not.”
Melissa’s sister said:
“I’m sorry.”
“For laughing?”
“Yes.”
“Why did you?”
“Everyone else did.”
Same old human weakness.
Then one neighbor said something important.
“Melissa jokes about you paying nothing all the time.”
“How often?”
“At dinners.”
“What does Brian say?”
“Usually laughs.”
That undermined Brian’s claim he had no idea about household economics.
Maybe he did not know exact amount.
He had allowed a narrative where I contributed nothing.
Why?
Because it made their generosity look impressive.
They hosted poor widowed Dad.
May you like
Except poor widowed Dad paid a large share of carrying costs.
Social image can become another form of profit.
