My sis-in-law ruined
my marriage

Dear Tita,

How can some people be so mean?

When my husband, Art, was still my boyfriend, I heard that his family was against me because they thought I wasn’t good enough for him. I even told him to forget me but he wouldn’t give up. He said he was deeply in love with me and insisted that we get married as soon as possible.

On our wedding day, Art acted and looked so happy that nobody paid attention to the long faces of his mother and sister. We had to live with his parents as his salary was not enough to pay the rent for a nice place of our own.

This was the beginning of my calvary. Art’s mother and sister Lyn showed their total dislike of me in every way they could. They kept criticizing the way I dressed, the way I cooked the food and the way I ate. I tried my best to please them but it was of no use. Nothing I did seemed to make them happy. Lyn kept putting me down until finally, I had enough. I told Art I was going home to my parents until we could have a place of our own. He tried to convince me to go back with him but I wouldn’t, and so he finally gave up.

One day, he called me and told me that he was being assigned to Cebu temporarily for six months. I wished him luck and secretly I hoped he would get a promotion so we could afford to have our own place. A few weeks later, I was invited to a reunion dinner with my former college classmates. One of the guests was Gino, my old college boyfriend, who was visiting from the States. We were happily chatting and laughing when all of a sudden, Lyn walked in and she saw me laughing at Gino’s jokes.

The next day, Art called while I was out at the mall. He was angry and left word for me to call him back. When I did call him, he was shouting at me and accusing me of flirting with Gino. I tried to reason with him but he slammed the phone on me. He hasn’t called since.

Please advise me what to do.

WORRIED WIFE

Dear Worried Wife,

Let his anger simmer down, then call your husband.

Explain to him what happened. Tell him that his sister walked in on a totally harmless scene while you and your college friends were happily laughing at each other’s jokes. Make him understand that Lyn twisted everything to make it appear that you were flirting with an old friend (don’t say flame).

Knowing how Lyn feels about you, I’m sure Art would see the light. If you can try to find a job, it would be much better so you can afford a place of your own.

TITA