My husband always praises and compliments his sister-in-law like she is the most perfect human being. Even when she is not around, he talks about her. It makes me feel awful compared to her. One day, I taught him a lesson that nearly made him cry.
My husband, Jerry, and I have been married for almost four years. We have two beautiful children, and while our lives have been busy and chaotic, we’ve managed to keep our relationship strong.
Parents with their two kids outdoors | Source: FreePik
Besides the occasional arguments, there is one thing Jerry does that annoys me. I don’t know if my husband does this on purpose or if just has a low EQ, but he knows that it bothers me yet he still does it.
A woman annoyed at a man | Source: Pexels
He thinks the sun shines out of his sister-in-law’s bottom. He sees her as a goddess, the embodiment of perfection. Nothing she says or does is wrong. Whenever we visit her, Jerry talks about her for three to four days afterward like he is in a trance. He compliments LITERALLY EVERYTHING she does.
One would think he was cheating, but I am sure he is not. They don’t even talk besides the times we all get together. Is he in love with her? I have no idea, but he is definitely insensitive towards my feelings.
A man in admiration | Source: FreePik
His sister-in-law, Grace, is married to Jerry’s brother, Martin. She’s always been the picture-perfect homemaker: three kids, an immaculate house, homemade meals. She somehow always looks put together. She makes motherhood seem so easy.
I’ve always admired her but never felt the need to compete. However, Jerry’s constant praise of her started to wear me down. One of our recent visits got the best of me, so I decided to give my husband a taste of his own medicine.
A woman annoyed | Source: FreePik
We visited last weekend to see their new baby. I swear he was paying more attention to her and the baby than he ever did to me or any of our children. He complimented everything about her, from how she looked to how clean the house was to the delicious food.
A woman cleaning the house | Source: Pexels
“Wow, Grace! No one would ever think you had just given birth. You look incredible!” he said as we entered their home.
He even praised how she made the bread and how she managed to recall our favorite dishes and desserts. “You are a superwoman,” he said. “Definitely limited edition.” I literally had it with him and said “enough” a couple of times, but he just ignored me. Meanwhile, Grace just giggled and welcomed the compliments.
A woman baking | Source: Pexels
At one point, she noticed that I was no longer comfortable with Jerry’s admiration. She would try to instead compliment me, but it was like my husband heard nothing.
Even when we arrived home, the praising continued. “Honey, isn’t it amazing how Grace can manage three kids and keep their home so neat and clean? What does that woman take?!” I tried to change the topic several times and even showed him I was annoyed. Still, Jerry kept going on as if he couldn’t take a hint.
A man talking to a woman | Source: FreePik
I had enough. So, yesterday, when we went to his sister-in-law’s again, I decided to turn the tables. As soon as we arrived, I started laying it on thick. We had a barbecue on their patio and Martin was behind the grilling. “Isn’t Martin amazing?” I said to Jerry’s sister-in-law. “He helps out so much and hasn’t succumbed to the dad bod yet. How incredible.”
A woman smiling at a man | Source: FreePik
My husband looked at me, startled, while his sister-in-law’s eyes widened. But I wasn’t done. “He is so fit in his 40s!” True enough, Martin was in shape and regularly went to the gym. He also watched what he ate.
I continued, ignoring the increasingly tense atmosphere. As we were about to go home, I noticed their new patio decor and added it to my list of compliments. “Did you build those, Martin?” I asked. “Wow, you have golden hands. Jerry can’t even screw in a light bulb,” I quipped.
Home patio decor | Source: Pexels
My brother-in-law, Martin, looked content receiving the compliments, smiling modestly. But his wife, Grace, and my husband, Jerry, visibly looked awkward. Jerry’s face turned red, and he started fidgeting.
When I mentioned how great Martin’s hair was, Jerry, who had hair problems and was slowly becoming bald, suddenly ran to our car.
An upset man | Source: FreePik
I excused myself and went after him. I found him in our car, nearly crying. “Okay, I got it,” he said. “My brother is better than me in everything, so why did you marry me then?”
Jerry went on to say that he has always been compared to his brother. However, hearing it from me made it sting even more. He went on to accuse me of being in love with his brother, and I just laughed.
A couple fighting in the car | Source: Pexels
I took a deep breath and replied calmly, “I just did the same thing you’ve been doing to me for the last few years.”
“What do you mean?” he replied.
“I mean, you always praise Grace in front of my face. You’re so obsessed with that you talk about her even when we’re no longer in their home. You make her seem like a God! Maybe YOU are in love with her!”
A couple fighting in the car | Source: Pexels
He was silent for a moment, then drove home suddenly. He was quiet for the rest of the evening and slept much earlier than usual.
A man in tears | Source: Pexels
The next morning, he came to me with flowers and an apology. “I’m so sorry, Penelope,” he began. “I appreciated Grace’s housekeeping skills because it was hard for me to manage work and house chores. I wasn’t complimenting her in comparison to you. I was complimenting her in comparison to ME.”
A man holding a bouquet of roses | Source: FreePik
He added, “I have been feeling like a lousy husband when it comes to household work, and I just wish I could be more like her. But I hadn’t realized how my words affected you. I promise to become a better husband and pay you more attention.”
I looked at him, holding the bouquet, his eyes filled with remorse and tears about to fall. Part of me wanted to believe him, to forgive and move on. But another part of me was still hurt, still stinging from the months of feeling second best.
A thinking woman | Source: FreePik
The next few weeks were a mixture of cautious hope and lingering doubt. Jerry started making small changes. He was helping more around the house, planning surprise date nights, and most importantly, expressing genuine appreciation for everything I did.
Maybe everything he said was true, but the fact that my husband felt that way meant I did something or didn’t do something. Was I lacking in making him feel appreciated? Was he just that insensitive to my feelings?
Unlike Jerry, another husband has been making his wife feel wonderful. At 50, he began to change into the man he was when she fell in love.
My Husband Turned 50 and He Suddenly Became the Man I Married
My husband, Chris, and I have been married for over twenty years. He has always been a good man and a wonderful father to our kids. In the early days, he was incredibly affectionate, and couldn’t keep his hands off me. We had this electric chemistry that I thought would never fade.
A couple enjoying time on the internet | Source: Pexels
But, after the kids came along, things started to change. The affection, the romance, and even the playful flirting that we once had, all began to fade away. It got to the point where I felt like we were just roommates. I read about couples losing intimacy and romance after having children, but I didn’t think it would happen to me.
A woman on her laptop and her family sleeping on the bed | Source: Pexels
Then, two months ago, something completely unexpected happened. Out of the blue, Chris asked me if I wanted to go away for the weekend, just the two of us. It was such a shock that I almost didn’t believe it at first. We hadn’t done something like that in years. But I agreed, hoping it would rekindle some of what we had lost.
A couple sitting by the beach | Source: Pexels
When we got back home, his new attitude continued. He started losing weight and getting more toned. He looked better than he did when we got married, and I found it difficult to keep my hands off him. I couldn’t help but wonder what had caused this sudden transformation.
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
‘Outdated, punishing rules’ – Mom fights for son, 8, to keep his long hair despite schools rejecting him
Despite the fact that we all have mixed memories of school, we can all relate to the rules. This is a tumultuous moment of highs and lows.
While some rules, like the one against wearing jewelry to athletic events, make sense, it seems unnecessary to send someone home because they brought a certain soda or because they are wearing too much makeup. It also misses teaching opportunities for the kids involved.
The strict dress codes enforced by schools often clash with the times in children’s lives when they want to be different and express who they are.
For one mother and her child, these rules might have been excessive, and they might have kept an 8-year-old boy from getting an excellent education.
Farouk James of London, England, attracts the attention of model scouts due to his amazing hairstyle. He is currently working as a child model and has completed photo shoots in Italy and New York.
But his appearance has only made things difficult for him in the classroom; multiple institutions have rejected him due to the length of his hair.
Bonnie Miller, James’s mother, says she was told when her older brother was in school that his hair was too short.
Bonnie claims that Farouk’s father is from Ghana and that, in accordance with traditional traditions, his parents waited until he was three years old to cut his hair.
“At that point, he was attached— and so was I, to be honest— with his beautiful hair,” Bonnie stated to CBS News. “We kept the hair only.”
The family lives in the UK, where most schools have a policy against guys wearing long hair, even if girls are allowed to.
Bonnie claims that cutting a child’s hair violates their human rights.
“I will not give up trying to persuade governments to put legislation in place to protect children from these outdated, punishing rules,” his mother Bonnie wrote in an Instagram post.
“Despite the fact that Farok has done nothing wrong, you reject him! He will have to say farewell to his buddies when they are all accepted into the universities he so desperately wants to attend.
Because of this, Bonnie even started a Change.org petition to make hair discrimination illegal in the UK.
“We’re assembling a real team and dubbed it the Mane Generation,” Bonnie said. “We are going to fight this until these rules are changed. It also spreads over the entire world, not only the United Kingdom.
Farouk’s mother has an Instagram account that boasts over a quarter of a million followers, showcasing his lively nature and role as a child model.
They still get hate mail, though, despite all the love and support he gets online. Bonnie stated she received a lot of negative comments after discussing the family’s search for a school that will welcome Farouk and his hair on the well-known U.K. TV morning show “This Morning.”
“This is mental health week, so I’m surprised to be receiving lots of negative comments about Farouk’s hair,” Bonnie said in May of last year.
“Farouk refuses to cut his hair to appease people; it is a God-given feature of him, and he does not keep it long at my request.”
Bonnie argues that the clothing regulations for boys and girls in schools are outdated and often discriminatory because many schools prohibit braids and dreadlocks.
The mother vows that she will never give up on gaining acceptance for Farouk, his hair, and all the other children who encounter discrimination because they want to display their cultural heritage and identity.
In 2022, it will not be acceptable for people in charge of our children’s education to turn away a student because of the color of their hair. Farouk’s hair is an essential component of who he is. These rules should be prohibited.
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