(I really feel as if I wrote about this once before but I am too lazy to read through EVERY post. I did a search on the post based on the word "Aunt" and didn't find a matching story so here we go.)
My Mother's Grandma had a heart attack in the early 90s. She lived in Sandpoint, Idaho, as did two of her daughters (my aunts). My parents live(d) in Spokane, Washington. There are great heart hospitals in Spokane so she was airlifted there for bypass surgery. The sisters living in Sandpoint hopped in a car to get their asses to Spokane (I can't rememebr rightly but it is something like 90 minutes), they called my Uncle in Kelso, WA (6-7 hours from Spokane). They didn't, however, call my Mom. She found out from her Step-Father, who called to let her know. She got in the car and made the 10 minute drive to the hospital in time to meet up with the two sisters who had just arrived.
As I have said before (I am also too lazy and tired to provide a link) my Grandmother played all her kids against each other and they tended to fight. So they all meet up at the hospital. Everyone is stressed out and worried and at least on my Mom's side, all sorts of pissed off. In times like this people tend to fall back into family stereotypes and act accordingly. My Mother faces off with my Aunts Joanne and Carole. Accusations and anger about not calling ahead.
My Aunt Joanne starts poking my mother in the chest as she is making points. Mom tells her to stop. She doesn't stop. Mom tells her again to stop or she'll be sorry. Again, Aunt Joanne doesn't stop. So Mom reaches out, puts her hands around Aunt Joanne's neck and shakes it a couple of times, then lets go.
As Mom says later, "She just wouldn't stop, so I just did that to make my point. And it worked."
For the next year or so everytime I hung out with my cousins (daughters of Aunt Joanne) we would have the same old argument.
"Your Mom strangled my Mom!"
My only argument to that was, "Tensions were high, feelings were hurt. Remember, we all tend to fall back into those old family habits in bad times." I would like to note that all my cousins, my sister, my parents, and I all get along famously. Not entirely certain you could say the same for my Aunt Joanne and her daughters. I am SURE the choking had nothing to do with that.
Disfunction, what?
Posted by kerewin at June 19, 2005 11:20 PMI got in the middle of a fist fight between my mom and my cousin...
I have never been forgiven really. It's one of those things we don't talk about.
Probably doesnt help that I had her by a police style choke hold to get her off my mother.
My dad had ahold of my mom, or no doubt they would have kept swinging at each other.
Ah, the love of a family. Great ain't it?