It’s O.K. Yours is Coming
There’s a special kind of threat that only someone who once claimed to love you can deliver. It’s not the loud, obvious kind. It’s not always screaming or slamming doors. Sometimes, it’s a text. Sometimes, it’s silence when your kids come home without the gear they need for sports—again. And sometimes, it’s a passive-aggressive “offer” of $25, framed like a gift from a god. This weekend, my kids missed sports because their father kept their cleats and equipment in his car. No heads-up. No drop-off. Just silence. Then came the phone call. He demanded I go buy new cleats. I told him I was working and couldn’t. He smugly said he’d send me $25, as though I should be groveling with gratitude. When I said I didn’t want his money—and reminded him I pay for everything—he told me $25 is big to him, and that I still owed him. I do not owe this man anything. When our relationship ended, I cashed out his portion of retirement—his fair share—and handed it over. He blew through it in less ...