Dear Manon:

I enjoyed your intelligent sense of humor, quite evident in your writing. Your sister in law’s behavior regarding the photographs read like the typical passive-aggressive type. She communicated to you something like: you dare not help me with the family photo montage? Well, I will show you!

But you were busy with two one-year old children and a three year old, couldn’t she see that you were too busy to look at photos… that you needed help, not another task to do? Maybe she saw that but selfishly what mattered to her is to have power-over: her will be done or else!

Here is a thought: if the sister was at the restaurant that day or evening, maybe the reason her “very reticent mother put her arms around (you) in the ladies room” of the restaurant and hugged you there and told you how glad she was that her son had you- was because that kind of behavior and words were not allowed by the sister… a maybe- thought.

anita