The unanticipated backdrop of a mother’s 50th birthday celebration becomes her son’s wedding problems, leading to a family argument about festivities and eclipsed vows.
I feel like I’m stuck in a difficult situation right now. I need assistance going through a mess that has completely disoriented my family. The truth is, I had been looking forward to turning 50 like a child counting down to Christmas.
My friends and family will be talking about this event for years to come. It’s a big deal. Imagine it as our take on a sweet sixteen, only with half a century’s worth of hopes and expectations.
Ideas and cash for this birthday have been gathering dust for as long as I can remember. I was honest with Sam, my boy, when he told me that his wedding would take place a week after my big 5-0. “Sam, this birthday celebration of mine is going to be enormous,” I informed him, making sure he understood the situation.
With a dismissive “Do what you want, Mom,” he dismissed it. You have the day. The worst part is that he is now agitated. He feels displeased that my party was lavishly planned and that some of our relatives are always drawing comparisons between it and his wedding. Where exactly did things go wrong, I wonder? Was that a genuine error or did I cross a boundary?