I blinked. Flooding? That didn’t sound right. She lived in a freshly renovated house, nothing but top-tier everything. I hadn’t heard a single complaint about it until now.
Before I could even begin to process, Joe appeared behind me. He looked guilty, eyes darting anywhere but at me. “Yeah… about that.” He rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly shifting his weight. “Mom’s gonna stay with us for a bit. Just until the house gets fixed.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me?” I asked, my glare piercing.
He shrugged like it was no big deal. “It’s only for a little while, babe. You and Mom get along, right?”
Get along? If by “get along,” he meant the passive-aggressive remarks about how we’d been married for six years and still hadn’t given her any grandkids, then sure. We were best friends. But I plastered on a smile, the kind you give when you’re two seconds away from snapping. “Of course. I totally understand.”
Hours later, after I’d pretended everything was fine, I got up for some water. As I passed the kitchen, I heard them talking in hushed voices.
“You didn’t tell her the real reason, did you?” Jane’s voice was sharp, like a knife slicing through the night.
Joe sighed. “No, Mom. I didn’t.”
“Well,” Jane huffed, “I’m here to keep an eye on things. Married this long with no children… someone’s got to figure out what’s going on. Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.”
My stomach twisted. This wasn’t about pipes. She was here to snoop. To pressure me about kids. To “handle” me. I stood frozen in the hallway, blood boiling. What the hell had I just walked into?
The next morning, I woke up with a plan. If Jane wanted to play her little game, I’d play mine. But I wasn’t going to get into a battle of wits with her. No, I was going to kill her with kindness. By 8 a.m., I had already started phase one of my “operation.”
I cleared out our entire master bedroom. Every piece of clothing, every picture frame, every trace of Joe and me was stuffed into the tiny guest room. I even found Jane’s favorite floral bedspread from the back of the linen closet and spread it over the bed like I was preparing a five-star hotel suite.
When I was done, I stood in the doorway, surveying my work. The bedspread was pristine, her cat pictures were lined up on the dresser, and to top it off, I made a “Welcome to Your New Home” basket. Bath bombs, lavender-scented candles, fancy chocolates.
By the time Joe got home from work, I was already sitting in the cramped guest room, arranging our clothes into whatever space I could find. He walked in, his forehead creased with confusion. “Why are you in here?” He peeked around the corner. “Where’s our stuff?”
“Oh, I moved everything,” I said, turning to him with the sweetest smile I could muster. “Your mom deserves the master bedroom, don’t you think? It’s only fair. She needs the space more than we do.”
His eyes widened in disbelief. “You… gave her our bedroom?”
“Of course,” I said with a grin. “She’s family, after all. We’ll be just fine in here.”
Joe stood there, mouth half open, processing what I’d done. But what could he say? Jane was his mother, and I wasn’t technically doing anything wrong. He sighed and walked out of the room without another word.
For the next few days, I made sure Jane was living like royalty. Fresh towels every morning, little snacks placed on the nightstand, and those lavender candles I knew she loved.
She wandered around the house like she owned the place, smiling at me like she’d won. But while Jane was lounging in luxury, Joe was starting to crack. Sharing the guest room was driving him nuts. Not just the lack of space, but his mom’s new obsession with prepping him for fatherhood.
Every morning, without fail, she’d hand him a schedule of vitamins.
“You need to take these, Joe,” she’d say, thrusting a multivitamin at him. “It’s important to get your body ready if you want healthy kids.”
Joe would roll his eyes but take the pills just to keep her quiet.
It didn’t stop there. “Should you really be watching TV at night?” she’d ask over dinner. “That’s not very baby-friendly. You should be reading parenting books. Or exercising. And no more video games! You need to mature, Joe. Fatherhood is serious.”
By day four, I found Joe sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at a stack of parenting books his mom had ordered online.
“I think I’m losing it,” he muttered, holding up a book titled “What To Expect When You’re Expecting.” “She expects me to read this.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Well, Joe,” I said, suppressing a laugh, “you did say we’d be just fine, didn’t you?”
It was relentless. Jane had taken things up a notch. One evening, she handed Joe a neatly typed list of “fertility-boosting” foods. Kale, quinoa, grilled salmon—no more burgers, no more pizza. She smiled sweetly as if she was doing him the world’s greatest favor.
“Your future kids will thank you,” she chirped.
Joe stared at the list like it was a death sentence. “Wait, no pizza? Ever?”
“That’s right, dear,” she said, patting his shoulder. “I’ve planned all your meals for the week. You’ll feel so much better once you start eating clean.”
That night at dinner, we sat around the table eating dry salmon and tasteless kale. Jane watched Joe like a hawk, her eyes flicking from his plate to his face. He shifted uncomfortably, picking at his food.
“Joe,” she started, “did you take your vitamins this morning?”
He sighed, stabbing a fork into the kale. “Yeah, Mom. I took them.”
“And what about the gym? Did you make time for that? You know, you’ve put on a little weight. It’s important to be in shape if you want to be a good father.”
I couldn’t help it. I kicked him under the table to stop myself from bursting out laughing. He shot me a look, his expression torn between frustration and desperation. After days of this, it was finally getting to him.
Later that night, once Jane had gone to bed, Joe turned to me, rubbing his temples. His voice was low, almost pleading. “I can’t do this anymore, Tiana. The guest room, the vitamins, the baby talk… I’m going insane.”
I bit my lip, trying to suppress a smile. “You have to admit,” I said, failing to keep the amusement out of my voice, “it’s kind of funny.”
His eyes narrowed. “It’s not funny.”
I let out a small laugh. “Okay, okay, it’s a little funny.”
Joe groaned and collapsed onto the bed. “I booked her a room at the hotel down the street. I can’t take another day of this.”
The next morning, he broke the news at breakfast.
“Mom, I’ve booked you a nice hotel nearby until the repairs at your house are done. You’ll be much more comfortable there.”
She blinked, clearly surprised. “But I’m perfectly fine here! And besides, isn’t it time you two got serious about giving me grandkids?”
Joe’s jaw clenched. “Mom, we’ll decide that when we’re ready. For now, the hotel is best for everyone.”
For a moment, Jane just stared at him. Then, realizing she had no leg to stand on, she reluctantly nodded. “Well… if you insist.”
By the end of the day, she was gone. The house was ours again.
As the door clicked shut behind her, Joe collapsed onto the couch with a dramatic sigh of relief. “Finally.”
I grinned, sinking down beside him. “So… kale for dinner?”
He groaned. “Never again.”
Kentucky High School Blocks Diploma For Student Who Praised Jesus In Unscripted Graduation Speech
It can be difficult to declare one’s beliefs in today’s society without encountering opposition. Micah Price, a Campbell County High School alumnus from Alexandria, Kentucky, found himself in this situation. Micah bravely shared his faith in Jesus Christ during his graduation speech, which caused the institution to first withhold his diploma.
Micah was allowed to mention Jesus Christ in his speech on May 24 at Northern Kentucky University’s commencement ceremony, which took place at Truist Arena. He took use of the occasion to exhort other Christians to maintain their faith. He was met with thunderous ovation from the crowd as he said, “Class, before another word leaves my mouth, I must give the honor, the praise, and the glory to my lord and savior Jesus Christ.”
Micah declared, “Who in his very words tells us he is the light, he is the way, the truth, and the life,” going beyond simple acknowledgment. I’m here to inform the class and everyone in the audience today that if you don’t have any of those things in your life and you’re having trouble finding the solution, then my lord and savior is the solution. The audience applauded this sincere message, but school administrators were not happy with his deviation from the authorized script.
Following his speech, Micah was approached by administrators from the school, informing him that he would have to defend his actions to the board of education. He received a rebuke from the school and had his diploma temporarily delayed. As Micah said in a TikTok video, “I went off script during the speech, so one of the principals came in, tapped me on the shoulder, and very politely and professionally told me that I was going to have to go in front of the board and explain what I did.”
Micah had previously been permitted to name his “lord and savior Jesus Christ” by the Campbell County School District, but they had required he adhere to the preapproved script. “All speakers were told that going off their submitted speech, or any unplanned choices at graduation, may have repercussions as they would at any school function,” Superintendent Shelli Wilson said in her explanation. Other than this outpouring of Christian faith, off-program decisions like political election remarks, incorrect language use, or speech, signs, and caps supporting any cause or religion could have the opposite effect.
But Micah remained steadfast in his convictions. He said that in order to prevent dividing the audience, the additional preaching that was originally included in his screenplay was removed at the school’s request. He told WKRC, “I think it was okay that I thanked him, but maybe it wasn’t what they wanted when I went in and pushed them to follow him and other Christians to stand up and talk about him.”
Though they had been reprimanded, Micah didn’t feel bad for the school administrators since he understood they were just carrying out their duties. He said, accepting full responsibility for his acts, “I follow God’s instructions, not anyone else’s. Thus, I am the one at fault if anyone is. I should be punished. When Micah finally got his certificate after a protracted holiday weekend, he described it as “an answered prayer.”
Micah, who is planning to enrol in the US Air Force Academy, is unwavering in his convictions and has no regrets. “Holding it is simply a prayer that has been answered; nothing more,” he uttered. Many find encouragement in Micah’s steadfast faith and bravery in defending his convictions, which demonstrate the strength of willpower and conviction in the face of difficulty.
Micah’s story serves as a reminder of the value of standing up for our values in a world when it might be difficult to communicate such beliefs. His story inspires others to be brave and unyielding in their convictions by demonstrating the power of strong character and the significant influence of unflinching faith.
Leave a Reply