A DESPICABLE CHARACTER

A DESPICABLE CHARACTER, BUT . . .

Probably the least liked character in Baggage burdens. is Jill’s father, Frank Rezley.   His treatment of her poisoned anyone who looked or acted like him. Unfortunately Frank’s behavior is all too common.

When Frank wasn’t drinking, he was a tolerable man, an excellent mechanic, a faithful husband, a good provider. The problem is frequently after work he’d go to the bar with the guys. He’d come home drunk and highly irritable. Get in his way and you’d be the recipient of bruises and a headache.

To conclude that he was weak willed because he gave into the lure of alcohol would be a mistake. His self-discipline prevented him from spending more on booze than he could afford. He demanded obedience from his kids. At his insistence, his wife used her second name, Alice, instead of Janet, the name her mother called her by. The change was meant as part of a message to Alice’s resourceful mother––leave this family alone or else. When Alice caught cancer, he quit drinking and smoking, cold turkey.

The harm caused by the home violence drove Kathy, Jill’s older sister, out of the house as soon as she completed her last year of high school. Jill ran away before she finished school. Peace did not come to Jill after escaping her father’s beatings. Memories of the beast infected her. Anyone who looked or acted like him represented a danger, a poison to be avoided. Men–– don’t trust them especially if they smoked or grew a beard––. Boyfriends who drank, just socially––dump them. Ones who try to control her––fear them. Adolescent lessons learned burned deep into her psyche. They guided her actions for decades until she caught a glimpse of the humanity in her father, the beast.

Do you know of any ill-tempered person?

Is there any redeeming trait that would make it possible to endure their unacceptable behavior?

Is there any good reason why such harmful behavior would be tolerated?

How could Alice Rezley live with such a man? Jill’s failure to answer that question left her with a low opinion of her mother.  Possible answers are explored in my next blog.