Hurricane Emily is due to sweep across The Bahamas leaving vacationers worried that they are going to lose a beach day and locals terrified that they are going to lose their homes. Perspective can be so fucked up. As for our happy little home, the drama of the veil continues. After expressing my point of view, I was ready to move on regardless of what the outcome would be. I was disappointed with my grandmother but there was not much that could be done after the decision had already been made.
Unfortunately, in an Italian family expressing an opinion is not as simple as that. Everyone needs to put in their two cents on both sides of the debate and word travels fast, no matter where you are. So it begins...
My grandmother who was defensive and disagreed that I shouldn't have hurt feelings vented to my Aunt Maria who then told her son Vincent, my cousin, who then 'instant messaged' my other cousin Anthony, who then 'facebooked' my other cousin Marco, who then 'BBM'd' cousin Angelo the one that is getting married who then tweeted my brother Andrew who then texted my mother. The phone rings one hour later in The Bahamas and its my mother. "What the hell is going on down there?!" she barked into the phone.
The fact that I did not agree with my grandmother's choice has hurt my cousin and now I feel terrible. From his point of view, I called everyone and complained, not knowing that it was a domino effect of gossip. If I knew that word was going to travel across international waters within a matter of minutes, I wouldn't have...wouldn't have...not sure exactly what I did wrong. I wouldn't have said something on a tropical island. I guess the "Whatever happens on Paradise Island stays on Paradise Island" rule doesn't apply. I wish we were in Vegas...
Was I supposed to stay quiet and not gently express that it hurt my feelings that a family heirloom was passed down to someone else because I am deemed as a hopeless spinster? At this point, it doesn't matter, it just would have been nice to have been considered. Now I am in a position where it would be best to take the high road and send an apology letter to his fiancée as much as I don't believe what I did was wrong. Her special day is next week and if I can do something to make it less stressful, out of the love of my cousin, I will.
Today is about realizing how irrational a big family can be where it becomes a case of too many cooks in the kitchen. Unfortunately, you can't choose them and sometimes its best to just shut the fuck up.
