"I inherited enough money from my late father to live comfortably and be able to focus on my creative career rather than paying the bills. I have had some success, but it has been chilled by the unchecked jealousy of my stepsiblings, "Janet" and "Tim." This has been a pattern since we were children, and they hated when I would get gifts from my dad and go on trips with him. After he died and I received his estate, it's been even worse."
"My mom and stepdad live in a small house in a rural area, and I try to visit every month. My father wasn't even 50 when he died, and it taught me that time here is short. But both Janet and Tim have boomeranged back home after making bad choices-Janet got involved with her married boss and her roommate's boyfriend, and Tim can't seem to stop having run-ins with the cops-so now when I visit, we're all crammed into the house, and it's very uncomfortable."
"My stepsister jumped in and said that she needed the car and I "owed" it to her to give it to her free since I have "always been given everything on a silver plate." I told her I would trade all the money in a heartbeat to get my father back, and that any complaints she has about her own life are her own fault. I haven't been to visit since."
The narrator inherited enough money to live comfortably and pursue a creative career, but the inheritance intensified long-standing jealousy from stepsiblings Janet and Tim. The stepsiblings resented gifts and trips with the narrator's father, and tension worsened after the father's death and estate distribution. The narrator visits monthly to see a mother and stepfather who live in a small rural house, but the house is crowded because both stepsiblings returned after making poor choices. Accusations of "bragging" and a confrontation over the narrator's car led to a harsh exchange and to the narrator stopping visits, while the mother expresses that the situation is difficult for the household.
Read at Slate Magazine
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