Sisters: they either get along or get along like a house on fire. This woman and her sister are like the house and the fire, which she says is fueled by parents playing favorites their whole lives. Now that something is finally going wrong for her sister, OP is delighted — but feels bad about it.
Can we blame her for feeling this much resentment toward her sister? Here's her story.
How It Started
OP's older sister, Angela, is someone she has never liked. Angela was always forced to compete with her, but never in the manner that siblings usually do. Angela had always seemed angry about her existence because the spotlight couldn't always shine on her. Therefore, she had to step on everything she valued.
Angela, for example, had to learn piano if she excelled at it. If she told her mother she had a crush, Angela would be dating that boy within a week. When Angela did this, she would always notify her parents, but she was ignored since “sisters copy each other” and she couldn't “gate-keep what Angela liked.”
Angela was constantly keeping tabs on her to see what she was up to and then trying to one-do it. Angela would wear a full-flannel dress to class if she could get away with it. (That was the height of popularity in their school's fashion scene in the year 2010). Angela was lauded more than everyone else, regardless of who initiated the activity initially. Angela's dancing recitals were so important to them that her parents often took time out of work to watch her perform.
However, she only recalls two of her own that they really showed up to since they were “stuck at work” or otherwise preoccupied. Angela would be cruel to her while their parents weren't around, telling her she loathed her and that she shouldn't bother trying since she'd always be second best. At school, Angela also engaged in physical bullying. Almost daily, Angela would deliberately trip her, throw objects at her, or beat her as they passed each other in the halls.
Angela's parents battled the school's attempts to get her suspended on many occasions. Her parents assured the school officials that this was a private family dispute and that their daughters were being siblings just bickering. And that was it she never got reprimanded by their parents, not once would Angela start screaming and claim the school was picking on her, even when she was always clearly in the wrong. Angela tried to convince her father that OP was the aggressor by cutting and bruising herself after one such incident.
It Gets Even Worse
Sadly, OP had a hard time making friends because Angela spread negative stories about her. OP resorted to only making friends with folks from other districts. But Angela wasn't done yet. She made sure she had no friends by following them around, befriending them, and spreading rumors that OP was the favored child and a bully.
Angela got so nasty that she convinced OP's boyfriend that OP was a horrible person and took him. Angela catfished her on Myspace for four months when she sent her several nude pictures, which Angela then forwarded to her parents and the whole student body (including the professors).
Her mother told her that she was no longer welcome in the family on the day of her high school graduation because Angela had told everyone about the terrible abuse she had endured at her hands. Her parents rarely tried to get in touch with her after she moved out the next day. They only sent her texts for special occasions like her birthday and the holidays. As soon as she stepped foot at school, her financial help was immediately cut off.
Soon after, she met her now-husband, and they married within a year. Her parents did not attend the wedding or even wish her well. She notified them of her first child's birth eight years ago, but they have made no move to contact or meet any of her three children. She learned that her sister Angela married one of her high school lovers and has been dealing with infertility troubles.
Her mother texted her that her sister had a miscarriage earlier in the week and was in pain. She is upset and guilty about her enjoyment of her sister's misery, but she feels no duty to give condolences. She wonders if this will change her sister, but for the time being, she is filled with joy at her sister's pain. She wonders if she is a bad person for having these feelings. What do you think?
You can read the original story here.
This post was produced and syndicated by Wealth Of Geeks.
Amaka Chukwuma is a freelance content writer with a BA in linguistics. As a result of her insatiable curiosity, she writes in various B2C and B2B niches. Her favorite subject matter, however, is in the financial, health, and technological niches. She has contributed to publications like Buttonwood Tree and FinanceBuzz in the past and currently writes for Wealth of Geeks.