Surrender sauce

Submitted to the Practice Corner:

Since my wife and I separated I don’t see my kids as much as I like.  This week we planned to have dinner together Friday night.  So Friday afternoon I make a big pot of spaghetti sauce – it’s kind of my thing – with meatballs and sausage.  It smells really good and I’m all excited.  Then the phone rings and it‘s my daughter, sounding nervous, asking if she can go to the movies with her friends instead. While I’m on the phone I get a text from my son saying he’ll be late because he’s gone with his friends to McDonalds.  Now, not too long ago I would have gone ballistic.  Would have turned into a hurt angry raging screaming bastard prick of a dad.  But I’m working hard in therapy on this control thing.   And I hear myself say to my daughter, “That’s okay.  Sauce tastes better the second night anyway.”  Then I text “No prob, c u later” to my son.  Then I fix myself a plate of spaghetti and sit down and eat it, and surprise, the sauce still tastes pretty good. 

~ Shared by T.B. (8/7/14)