Fortnight to pack up and find yourselves a new roof over your heads. Daughters in a huff
Evelyn lost her husband early on, so she ended up raising two daughters single-handedly. Despite it all, no one ever heard so much as a grumble escape her lips. Both girls not only grew up nicely, but also managed to get themselves a decent educationwith a large dose of encouragement (and financial support) from their mother. Evelyn pulled double shifts just to cover their university fees.
Then, as the plot would have it, her eldest turned up one day with a boyfriend in tow, announcing he was her future husband. The only snag? He didnt have a place to live. Next thing you know, theres a baby, and Evelyn had to hand over her own bedroom to the young family while she bunked in with her younger daughter.
Evelyn, ever the optimist, assumed this would be temporary. Surely the young couple would save up for their own flat, and life could go back to the regularly scheduled program. But as time ticked on, neither her daughter nor son-in-law seemed in any rush to leave the nest. After all, why bother when youve got a roof over your head, a perpetually stocked fridge, and a mother-in-law who doubles as a personal chef?
Gratitude, however, was apparently out of stock. Instead, tensions crept in. The younger daughter pointed out (rather loudly) that cleaning the loo after her brother-in-law was not part of her life plan. The eldest pleaded she had a newborn and no time for chores. As for the son-in-law, he maintained that bin duty and doing the washing-up was hardly a dignified occupation for a man, and spent most days happily glued to his computer.
Home became a warzone. Some days, Evelyn dreaded walking through her own front door. When she gently suggested her daughter might want to flat-sharewith husband and childthe reply was classic, Were saving for a mortgage, Mum. Where exactly is this extra pound meant to come from? So they stayed, and the tension simmered.
The final straw, as fate would decree, arrived when the younger daughter brought her boyfriend home and announced, Mum, hes from Manchester. Hes going to stay with us. Evelyn blinked. Where? The kitchen? Her daughter, not missing a beat, explained the kitchen was a bit too snuggly for two. But if Evelyn moved in there, everyone else could have their own room. Problem solved.
That was itEvelyns patience finally snapped. One day, the realisation hit her like a brick to the head: her opinion was being treated with about as much respect as an out-of-date tin of beans. Truth be told, if push came to shove, her daughters would probably draw up paperwork to ship her off to a care home.
So she delivered the ultimatum: Youve got two weeks to pack your things and find somewhere else to live. The daughters flew into a proper strop, vowing shed never see the grandkids again. In fact, they proclaimed, shed die old and alone. Evelyn was unmoved. If this was the price of peace, so be it. High time the girls grew up and stood on their own two feet.
Evelyns fiftieth birthday is just around the corner now. Whether her daughters will turn up to wish her many happy returns is anyones guess. Do you reckon she did the right thing evicting her own offspring? What would you have done in Evelyns shoes?
