Contest Alert:1 Picture 1 Story week # 32

It was a unique opportunity to travel to another country to see part of her family. I had to convince her, as she didn't want to leave her 20-year-old son or my husband. I gave her a thousand reasons to go, but she still wasn't completely decided. The relatives who gifted her the flight also included one for my son, so her mother and her son at least didn't separate from the family completely, but the most important. I helped them plan everything so it wouldn't be a difficult trip, and I told my wife to control her temper to avoid fights and days of pure silence. Things were going well, and on the last day, just before leaving, she got angry because she smelled cigarette smoke on me, which infuriated her. They left without saying goodbye, without leaving any messages about where they were going or what they were doing. I saw that indifference is a way to kill someone without using weapons.

For days we didn't speak, and among the three of us, we kept the economy going at home. The situation was very difficult, especially since I am disabled in one leg and can't work. I was left with almost no money, no job, and little food, in addition to the complete indifference of my wife and son. At first, I thought they were beside me in bed or at home, so I woke up sad and very distressed. I sent a message apologizing, and she responded coldly. The next day, I told her I missed her, and she simply responded, "it's okay." That message, without any feeling, helped me realize that I only started to feel better. I think never having been so distant in 30 years marked a before and after.

Gabriela Palai:

Living alone made me reflect on how many people have been abandoned and have had to learn that pain diminishes with time, and life gradually recovers from the saddest and darkest place. Life's experiences continue to surprise us and make us go through feelings we didn't even know were there. Who knows how the story will continue, but often one must dare to live alone when there is only war or minimal truces between two, as in the conflict between Palestine and Israel. This is today's story.