“I want you to explain why you think you had the right to make decisions about my house without consulting me.”
“Mom, we already talked about this. I just wanted to help Linda and Robert, and I thought you would want to help them too.”
“Sarah, that is not an explanation. That is a justification. I am asking you why you did not consult me before deciding.”
“Why? Because I knew you were going to put obstacles.”
“What kind of obstacles?”
“You were going to say you didn’t have space, or that you didn’t know Linda and Robert well, or that you wanted to be alone.”
“And those wouldn’t have been valid reasons?”
“But, Mom, you have a three-bedroom house. You have plenty of space.”
“Sarah, do you understand that the size of my house does not give you the right to decide who lives in it?”
“But it is just that… it is just that you have always been very closed to meeting new people.”
David leaned forward.
“Excuse me for interrupting, but did you ask your mom if she wanted to meet new people?”
Sarah looked at him, annoyed.
“You have no reason to meddle in this.”
“Sarah,” I said firmly, “David is here because I invited him. You are going to treat him with respect, or this conversation ends.”
“Okay. Okay.”
Linda spoke for the first time.
“Sarah, can I ask you something?”
“What?”
“Why did you tell us that your mom wanted us to come live with her?”
Sarah turned red.
“Why? Because I knew you weren’t going to accept if you thought it was charity.”
“But it was charity,” said Robert. “And there is nothing wrong with that if it is offered with respect.”
“Sarah,” I continued, “do you understand that lying to Linda and Robert was also wrong?”
“I didn’t lie to them. I only adapted the truth so they would feel better.”
“That is called lying, Sarah.”
“Oh, Mom, do not be so dramatic.”
“Sarah, that is exactly the attitude that bothers me. Every time I point out something you did wrong, you tell me I am dramatic or exaggerated. But it is that you are exaggerating.”
“Does it seem exaggerated to you that I want to have a voice and a vote in my own house? No. But does it seem exaggerated to you that I want to be consulted before people are invited to live with me? No. But does it seem exaggerated to you that I want my feelings to be considered?”
“No. But everything ended well. Linda and Robert have a place to live. You have company. Everyone wins.”
David spoke again.
“Excuse me, Sarah, but you believe the end justifies the means.”
“What do you mean?”
