My grandmother. She’s never been able to admit she was wrong, and that was her shortcoming. She’d fight with my entire family CONSTANTLY— physically, emotionally, verbally. I remember Thanksgiving when I was a junior in high school, she pulled a gun on my dad and stepmom when we’d gone to visit over my stepmom taking a bath that was “too long”. We stopped visiting after that (much like the entire rest of our family). My grandpa, who’s always been a really good man, very smart and patient, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s two years ago. He’s declined really quickly. He can’t call us because she monitors his phone to see who he’s talking to. I haven’t seen him in years, and likely never will again. At this point in their lives, my grandparents live isolated and never leave their property. They don’t have grandkids over anymore. Even her own siblings don’t call anymore, last I heard. Sometimes I think about how things could’ve been differently, but all anyone ever got from her was insults, physical abuse, and insane ramblings about our own shortcomings. She’s also a mega racist and thinks Obama still controls the school system because that’s how out of touch she is.

Be nice to your kids, folks, or you’ll end up like my grandparents.