Jacob and Erica got married in a small ceremony. The newlyweds agreed to keep it quiet, especially from Kelly. Over time Jacob’s condition deteriorated. He frequently couldn’t recognize those around him and would often get lost. He experienced anxiety and there were changes in his personality and mood. Jacob, who was a kind and polite person all his life, often became aggressive and impatient.
He had difficulty completing simple tasks such as paying monthly bills, collecting rent, following instructions, etc. He denied that something was wrong with him. He did not want to see a doctor despite his friends’ pleas. Although Erica was perfectly aware of Jacob’s condition, she acted as though nothing was wrong. In fact, on her boyfriend’s advice, she didn’t encourage him to see a doctor. Erica took advantage of Jacob’s health condition and stopped paying him rent. In addition, she convinced him to give her access to his bank account, which he did.
Julio was pleased with the situation, and moved in with Erica without Jacob noticing. Julio lived in Jacob’s house without paying a penny. He and Erica slowly took over Jacob’s life and especially his money. Anyway, after Anita’s death, Jacob would regularly visit her family and they would visit him. He used to dine at the family restaurant at least once a week. As well he attended almost all of their family functions. They weren’t only his family, but also his friends. But since Erica entered his life, she did everything she could to isolate him and succeeded.
Jacob relationship with Anita’s family changed over time. He stopped seeing them so often and at some point, they weren’t in touch at all. Jacob went to see a doctor after randomly bumping into one of his brothers-in-law Geraldo. He didn’t recognize Geraldo at first, but when he did, he was happy to see him.
Jacob was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s shortly after visiting his doctor. Afterward, Geraldo and Jacob renewed their relationship. Jacob then told Geraldo that he had memory problems due to his age. He also said Erica was taking care of all of his needs. Geraldo would visit Jacob to the dismay of Erica and Julio, who tried to prevent these visits. Many times they didn’t open the door for him when he came to see Jacob.
Geraldo felt their hostility and thought something was wrong. He also learned that Jacob and his daughter were not in touch for a long time which surprised him. When he asked Jacob for the reason, Jacob could not give him an answer as he did not remember………. Geraldo was disturbed by his brother-in-law’s situation. Therefore, he decided to involve his wife Carmen, who was Anita’s sister. Carmen was a very curious person with a phenomenal memory. She knew a lot of people from the Latino community in Florida.
However, Carmen and Geraldo went to see Kelly and updated her on her father’s condition. They told her she should renew her relationship with him before it’s too late. Geraldo said that he suspected Jacob suffered from Dementia even though he didn’t admit it. Geraldo also said it’s possible Jacob was being taken advantage of by his tenant.
Kelly was very upset and cried after she heard what her Aunt and Uncle had to say. On the same day, she and Bob went to see her Father. Jacob was thrilled to see them. He didn’t mention the argument he previously had with Kelly and acted as though he saw her the day before. Jacob was repeatedly asking the same questions and was mixing up words. Kelly and Bob noticed he lost a lot of weight and he looked pale.
Jacob was by himself when they arrived. Erica arrived later on. She walked in through the front door as if it was her own home. She froze when she saw Kelly and Bob as their visit was unexpected. Erica didn’t know what to say at first. But then she excused herself and said she had to prepare Jacob’s meal and went to the kitchen. After visiting her Father, Kelly made an appointment with Jacob’s physician who she knew for many years. He was her parents’ doctor for as long as she could remember.
Before meeting the doctor, she went to see her lawyer Amanda, who was her friend as well. Anita and Jacob wrote a will in which they bequeathed all their assets to each other in case one of them dies. But they didn’t leave any instructions in the event they were incapacitated. Since Kelly was their only child, she needed to know if it was necessary to take some legal action to protect her father. For that reason, Amanda thought they should ask Jacob’s doctor for his medical records. In addition, Kelly would try to gently coax the physician to tell her if Jacob was diagnosed with Dementia or any other disease first……………….
Erica told Jacob she had an Aunt who lived in Miami and had a beauty salon. She lived and worked with her for a while, but the two of them didn’t get along and Erica had to move on. Since she was in the US illegally, she accepted any job that was available. She frequently worked at temporary jobs and most of the time her employers paid her much less money than they should have. Erica said that she hoped she would meet a nice American guy one day and get married. This way she would be in a loving relationship and get the American citizenship she so yearned for.
She wanted a better future for her and her children. Erica’s story really touched Jacob. He wanted to help her but didn’t know how. He told her she and her children would have a place to stay as long as he lives. He also reduced the rent which made her happy. Jacob treated Erica’s children like they were his grandchildren. He used to buy them gifts and even gave them pocket money.
Despite the large age difference between them, Jacob and Erica would talk for hours. Jacob considered her to be a good friend. He shared many things with her that he didn’t with his own daughter. One day Jacob didn’t feel good. He was confused for a few minutes and looked pale. Erica, who was at home at that time, knew something was wrong with him as he slurred his words. She suggested he see a doctor immediately. Jacob, who quickly recovered, told her this wasn’t the first time it happened.
He said there was nothing to worry about, as it is probably because his blood sugar dropped. But she insisted to take him to his physician who said he had a mini stroke and sent him to the hospital immediately for comprehensive testing. Jacob was hospitalized and had a cardiac catheterization as he had some clogged arteries. The doctor in the hospital told him he was lucky as he came in time. He also said another stroke was right around the corner which could kill him.
When Kelly heard that, she insisted her father move in with her. But Jacob didn’t want to, he wanted to stay in his own house. Eventually, Kelly decided to hire a housekeeper to help him. She found someone with a lot of experience working with seniors and also had a great reputation. Erica felt threatened by her presence the first day she was there. The housekeeper cooked his meals, ran errands and took care of all Jacob’s needs. Erica was concerned he wouldn’t need her anymore.
Anyhow, this arrangement didn’t last long as Erica convinced Jacob to get rid of the housekeeper. She said she would take over the housework and everything else. Kelly was furious when she heard the news. She went to his house and confronted him. Jacob told his daughter to mind her own business. He was offended that she dared tell him what to do. Kelly was shocked by his aggressive behaviour and was practically in tears. Jacob never spoke with his daughter that way before. Kelly was so hurt by her father that she didn’t speak with him for a long time.
However, a couple of months after his stroke, Jacob seldom forgot things. He drove to places he knew very well and he didn’t recognize them. He met people on the street he knew for years and had no clue who they were. Sometimes he didn’t even recognize Erica and spoke with her as though she was Anita. At first, most of his acquaintances didn’t notice as it didn’t happen too often, except for Erica who knew something was wrong with him.
Erica decided to ask Jacob for a favour and marry her…… She told him she couldn’t stay in the U.S any longer as the authorities were after her. Erica added that this was the only way she could apply for citizenship. The timing of her request was not by accident……….Erica knew it’s now or never………..
Her request came as a surprise to Jacob. He vehemently refused to deceive the authorities. He also pointed out the age difference between them which was close to forty years. Jacob said that even if he agreed to marry her, no one would believe the marriage was real.
At the same time, a guy named Julio used to visit Erica from time to time. She introduced him to Jacob as her cousin. Julio was a handyman, and every time something broke in the house, he would fix it. In fact, Julio was Erica’s boyfriend and he was in the US illegally as well.
Julio was the one who conceived the idea of Erica marring Jacob. He also chose the timing after he saw how confused Jacob was. Julio who lost his father to Alzheimer’s recognized the symptoms. He also recognized the opportunity he had to take control of Jacob’s assets. In addition, Julio knew that Jacob’s relationship with his daughter was in crisis and she wouldn’t interfere with his plan
Therefore, he decided the marriage had to take place before Jacob’s situation deteriorated further……. As a result, he pressured Erica to persuade Jacob to marry her as soon as possible……….
Life can be very challenging, let alone when we have to contend with sinister people.
Bereavement can have a devastating impact on everyone, particularly on seniors who all too often, cannot recover from their loss, and die shortly after losing their loved one. However, some of them try really hard to overcome bereavement and move forward with their lives. But occasionally fate intervenes and forces them to cope with heartless people………
Jacob lost his wife Anita when he was 72. Anita was a healthy and happy woman who enjoyed life. She was a person with a presence you couldn’t ignore. Her laugh was infectious and could be heard three houses away. She was always active and almost never missed a social gathering.
Anita moved with her family to the States from Cuba when she was 10. The family that was poor in Cuba did very well for themselves in the States. They opened a Cuban restaurant which was quite successful. Anita worked in the family business with two of her siblings until her last day.
Anita and Jacob were together since they were 15. The couple has one daughter Kelly. Kelly was married and had three children. She and her husband Bob were both pediatricians. Kelly always had a close relationship with her parents, especially with her mother. She lived nearby and they used to help her with the kids.
Anyway, Kelly and Bob decided to fly to Switzerland for a week to celebrate their 10th anniversary. Her parents were more than happy to take care of the children while they went on vacation. Kelly was excited about the vacation as she and Bob hadn’t taken one for a long time.
The day before their departure, Kelly and her mother went to the ballet. They had a great time together. Anita and Jacob were supposed to move into their daughter’s house for a week to look after the grandchildren. After the ballet, Kelly took her mother home and before dropping her off, she asked her if they could come a little earlier the next day. Anita said they would be there.
When her parents didn’t show up the next morning, Kelly tried to call them, but no one answered. Later on, Jacob called Kelly from the hospital and said Anita didn’t wake up…….. The news about Anita’s death shocked her family and friends. Jacob looked like a zombie for weeks. He refused to believe that Anita was gone. Anita was his sweetheart, the love of his life. Kelly was devastated as well. Anita wasn’t just a mother for her, but also her best friend.
After Anita passed away, Jacob moved in with Kelly and her family for a while. Kelly tried to persuade him to live with them permanently, but he declined. He wanted to go back to his home, which was full of wonderful memories of his precious wife. Besides, he needed his privacy and he didn’t want to be a burden on his daughter. Anyway, when Jacob went back to his house, he realized how big it was for one person. He also felt lonely and would frequently glance at the front door as though Anita could come home any minute. He did not know what to do without her.
After a while, on his friend’s advice, Jacob decided to rent out the basement of his house. He rented it to a young couple despite Kelly’s opposition. His daughter wanted him to sell the house. She couldn’t accept the idea of her father living with strangers. She was worried about him being taken advantage of. But her fears were proven false. The young couple and Jacob got along very well. Each side respected the other’s privacy. After approximately one year the couple left and Jacob was looking for new tenants.
But not for too long, as one of Bob’s colleagues told him that their maid Erica, who just got divorced, was looking for an apartment. He said she had two young children, seven and ten. He also said he hadn’t known her for very long, but she had good references. Since Erica needed a place to live, she immediately went to see Jacob. He was impressed by her and she signed the lease the same day. She and her children moved in the next day.
In the beginning, Erica and her children kept their distance from Jacob. But this slowly changed. She would occasionally send him homemade cakes and cookies with one of her children. Then Erica learned that Jacob’s wife was from Cuba like her, so she would send him some home-cooked meals as well. Erica’s gesture made Jacob very happy as he missed his wife’s cooking.
After Anita passed away, Jacob would spend the weekends and holidays at Kelly’s. At some point, Erica started to invite him for meals on the weekend and sometimes during the week. As a result, he spent more time with his tenant and her children and less with his family, which Kelly didn’t appreciate.
One day Erica confided in Jacob that she was abused by her ex-husband for years. She said her husband used to regularly get drunk and then got into fights with people. He never took responsibility for his children. Erica had to work at two or three jobs to support her children. Eventually, she had enough of this mistreatment and she resolved to take her children and leave her husband. Later on, she left her country as well………..
We just came back from shopping. It seems like all I do lately is go out to buy groceries. Unfortunately, this is my entertainment. Toronto is a big city and there is always a lot of traffic on the roads. But not anymore. The roads are pretty empty recently, except for a few cars. We have been living on a main street for a long time, and for as long as I can remember, it’s never been so quiet here. In fact, I can often hear the birds singing……..
However, no one saw this coming. It looks like the end of the world. You see the health care systems in rich, developed countries collapse like a house of cards, as they are unable to cope with so many sick people all at once. Basically, we have all been caught with our pants down….. which is very disturbing.
It breaks your heart to hear about the enormous number of deaths in Italy and Spain. Every day we find out there are thousands more infected people all over the world. We don’t know when this started, and we don’t know when this madness will end.
So far millions of people have lost their jobs. Thousands of businesses have closed, and some will probably never open again. The experts on TV are telling us that we haven’t seen the worst of it yet. Watching TV is depressing. All you hear is bad news which they repeat over and over again.
Most people are disciplined, and stay home as requested by the authorities and the experts. However, although the city looks deserted, there are still irresponsible young people hanging out together. They go to the beach, to parks, sometimes with children, and put everyone at risk. They think they are immune, or invincible, and haven’t internalized that their behaviour could turn Canada into the next Italy or Spain.
On the other hand, there are many bright spots in the midst of this tragedy. There are people helping seniors by buying groceries for them, or picking up their medication and delivering it to them. Others are donating their time and money to hospitals or charities. People have joined together and are united in fighting to get past this difficult period.
This situation brings out the best in us and you hear many heartwarming stories of people helping neighbours, friends, and also complete strangers. Under normal circumstances, you don’t hear stories like these so often. But lately, you hear them all the time.
Another bright spot is the roads are empty, which means there are no traffic jams. It also means less air pollution, and you can easily find a parking spot when you need one. As well, many people are spending more quality time with their immediate family. Actually, there are even some people who discovered they have a spouse and children………… 🙂
I also read online there is less crime now. If this is true, it is indeed encouraging.
We see that businesses and governments are collaborating to find ways to produce badly needed medical supplies and equipment. For example, North American car companies were asked by the US and Canadian governments to produce ventilators. At least two car companies have retooled factories and will be producing them.
Other businesses have switched their production lines from clothing to masks, gowns, and gloves within a few weeks. Working together this way benefits everyone. Employees keep their jobs, the companies stay open and sell their products, and hospitals and medical staff receive badly needed supplies.
Although schools are closed, teachers have adapted by putting their lessons online, or they schedule meetings with their students using video conferencing. I’m sure some students would be happy if they were left alone…… but at least they don’t have to sit in a classroom.
In our wildest dreams, no one could have imagined what we are seeing all around us. Who could have imagined there would be no cleaning supplies and no toilet paper in stores. There are also basic food items missing. Entire shelves are sitting empty in stores. How could these items be out of stock?
Can you imagine? No toilet paper?! Doesn’t everyone know that what goes in has to come out………. 🙂 We looked everywhere to buy some for two weeks, and everywhere we went, they were sold out. Some people in North America are hoarding supplies and food, and anything they can get their hands on, even if it is food they don’t normally eat, and things they don’t use.
For example, a friend of mine and the rest of her family are allergic to tuna. The number of cans of tuna that she bought could feed a small army. When I asked her why she bought them, she said: “well, everyone else was buying it, so I decided to buy some too. And you never know, someone from my extended family may need some. Besides, maybe I can make some money by selling some online.” ….. 🙂
Another friend of mine, who lives in a studio apartment, bought so many rolls of toilet paper, it filled up half the space inside his apartment. I asked him if this was his idea of redecorating……. 🙂 But at least now I know who to call if I’m short on toilet paper.
Unfortunately, someone somewhere was negligent and all of us are now paying the price. Had we known earlier maybe fewer people would have suffered.
Anyway, some experts predict that the Coronavirus will disappear when the weather warms up. I hope they are right, and that this disaster will be behind us soon. I hope with God’s help a vaccine will be found shortly.
Natalie and William were in shock and looked at each other………. When they opened the door, two police officers showed them their badges and asked if they could come in for a few minutes. The policemen asked them if they knew a man called Stefan Johnson. William and Natalie froze when they heard his name. Before answering, the couple wanted to know the purpose of their question.
The policemen said Mr. Johnson was murdered. William and Natalie were stunned. The officers continued talking while closely looking at their facial expressions. They mentioned their names were found among many others on a list during a search of Stefan’s house. At that point, William told Natalie not to say anything before they speak with their lawyer. William called Mathew who requested they remain silent until he arrived.
Once Mathew arrived, William and Natalie volunteered all the information they had about Stefan, including the break-in at their house. Before the police left, they said they might ask them to come to the station for more questioning. However, news about Stefan’s death spread all over the city. Apparently, his mutilated body was found with the bodies of his two enforcers on the same construction site. The area they were buried in was an undeveloped location outside of the city.
Two months later, when the construction company prepared the ground for development, they found the bodies. The rumors said that Stefan also engaged in drug trafficking and used to terrorize his borrowers. Needless to say, nobody shed any tears for his sudden death. The information published about Stefan in the media after his death was difficult to digest, especially for William.
He realized how irresponsible Natalie was by dealing with someone like him. She exposed him and their children to life-threatening danger. William thought she was definitely unfit to raise their children and was even more certain after consulting with a child psychologist. William also met with an addiction specialist to learn more about Natalie’s illness. After William and Natalie vacated the house, William moved in with his mother, while Natalie and the kids moved in with her parents.
Despite the upheavals in her life, Natalie continued gambling, especially after receiving her share from the sale of the house. She gambled less often, but never completely stopped. It’s as though she never learned her lesson.
Anyway, shortly after they left the house, William filed for divorce and asked for custody of their children. William, who experienced trauma as a child when his parents divorced, did not want his children to suffer as well. But he didn’t have any choice. After what Natalie put him through, he felt no love for her anymore. In addition, Natalie failed as a mother and was incapable of taking care of her children because of her addiction.
However, the last thing William wanted was to take his children away from their mother. But after days of deliberation, and after talking with Marie who promised she would be there whenever he and his kids needed her, the decision was made. Besides, William thought if he asked for full custody, Natalie would have the motivation to go to rehab.
Natalie was taken by surprise and was very upset when she heard what he had done. She promised she would fight for her children. Since divorce can be a long process, on his lawyer’s advice, William filed for temporary custody of his kids until the final decision was made. His lawyer presented the court with two opinions from two child psychologists, which both strongly recommended the children live with their father. Furthermore, he presented some evidence he had including proof he received from the private investigator about Natalie’s addiction.
It didn’t take long until the court ordered the children shall live with their father. At the same time, William and John were negotiating with a big company that was interested in buying their startup. The negotiations were long and tedious but ultimately worthwhile. John and William received a very generous offer which led to the sale of their company. Their dream finally came true. After his company was sold, William had a lot of free time to spend with his kids.
He tried to compensate them for the countless hours he wasn’t around. All the while, the divorce process was moving forward. At the end of the case, the judge ruled that William would have full custody on a permanent basis, and Natalie would have visitation rights. Natalie was devastated when she heard the judgment and started crying. The judge then said that if she enters a treatment program and makes sufficient progress, he would be willing to reassess the custody arrangement.
Although it was sad for William to see the mother of his children fall apart, he was sure he did the right thing for his children’s sake. In addition, Natalie was compelled to get the help she needed.
Natalie was waiting for him in the living room. She looked exhausted and fragile. Despite the immense anger inside of him, he felt sorry for her. He put the paperwork on the table in front of her….. and he suddenly noticed a look of relief on her face. Natalie glanced at the document and said….. “the bastard finally got to you.” William tried to be calm and not lose it with her. He got to the point and told her about Stefan’s visit. He was furious as he was deceived by her for years. He said had he known she was addicted to gambling, he would have never been involved with her.
As the conversation went on, his tone of voice got louder. He told her he couldn’t cope with this situation. Under no circumstances was he willing to live in fear of his family being hurt by criminals. Natalie didn’t have much to say in response to his accusations. At the end of the conversation, both of them agreed that the house must be sold. They also agreed they should get a loan from the bank. William called the real estate agent who helped them buy the house a few years before.
Half an hour later he came to their house. The agent was impressed with the house and said there was a huge demand for houses in that area. He was sure the house would sell in no time. After the agent left, William asked Natalie if her parents could help with the first payment to Stefan. Her answer was that she owed them quite a bit of money, which did not surprise him. Apparently, the decision William made before he got married to Natalie, to have separate bank accounts, was brilliant. otherwise, she would have emptied it by now.
Anyhow, since the bank was closed for the day, they decided to go there first thing in the morning. In the evening, William went to his mother’s and updated her with the news. Marie was upset but didn’t say anything as she saw her son was in turmoil. She listened attentively to what he had to say, and said she would like to help. Marie, who was divorced for many years, lived by herself in a large apartment.
She lived not too far from Natalie’s parents and suggested William’s family move in with her until they could stand on their own two feet. In addition, Marie offered her son some money for the first payment, which he gladly accepted. He appreciated her gesture as he needed all the help he could get. William gave his mother a hug and said he would let her know about them moving in with her. On his way home, John called and said he could raise the entire initial payment within a couple of days. William was very happy to hear the news, as he knew he could make the first payment before it was due.
The day after, William and Natalie went to the bank and they were told they could get the money in approximately two weeks. A week later, Natalie and William made an appointment with Stefan to meet at Mathew’s office to hand over the first payment. They agreed to meet again in three weeks to pay the balance. Although Natalie and William were still living together, they acted like strangers. They slept in separate bedrooms and spoke to each other only if necessary. It was obvious their marriage was finished.
In the meantime, quite a few people came to see the house. Many of them expressed an interest in buying it. But there was one couple who were very enthusiastic about the property because they lived nearby and knew it was an excellent value. They wanted to buy the house for their daughter who just got married. Therefore, they gave William and Natalie a price they couldn’t refuse, as it was much higher than the house was worth.
In addition, they were willing to pay almost three quarters of the total price in a few days. They also agreed to let them stay in the house for three months. The deal was signed and the couple transferred the money in five days as previously agreed to. William and Natalie felt relieved since they succeeded in raising the entire amount against all odds in one week. The day after the funds were transferred, they cancelled the bank loan.
Three weeks after the initial payment was made, William and Natalie went to Mathew’s office with the final payment. They were eager to put it behind them. They made an appointment with Stefan at 3 pm that day. But when he didn’t show up on time and after waiting for about an hour they tried to call him but no one answered. They waited more than three hours for him to arrive, and tried to reach him by phone at the same time. He did not answer any of their calls. Eventually, they gave up and returned home disappointed.
Natalie went to meet her gambling friends to ask about Stefan. Apparently, no one saw him for at least a couple of weeks. Natalie and William didn’t know what to do. They were sure that Stefan was trying to intimidate them. The atmosphere at home was tense. They were both nervous and every time somebody knocked on the front door, their hearts skipped a beat. A couple of months later, shortly before they had to vacate the house, somebody knocked on the door. When they asked who was there, the answer was “the police.”…………………..
William was terrified by the thought that something might happen to his precious kids. After Stefan left, William was paralyzed with fear. He sat at his desk for a long time until John entered his office. John noticed his friend looked pale and asked him what was going on. William was quiet at first and then he started talking non-stop as though someone turned on a tap. He was in a panic and told John about the visit he had.
He said his wife was addicted to gambling and he learned she started gambling long before he met her. He added that Natalie put her family at great risk by taking loans from a loan shark. William told John he was given one week to come up with $300,000 and the remaining $650,000 three weeks later. John was overwhelmed by what he heard. But a few minutes later he regained his composure and started to calm William down.
John mentioned to his partner that there were several companies interested in buying their company. As well, the minute they sell their startup they would be rich. He reminded William he was there for him and would help him raise the first payment, and the balance later on. John has a brother named Mathew who was a lawyer in a large firm. He suggested that William meet with him right away. William went to see Mathew and showed him the paperwork he got from Stefan.
After Mathew reviewed the paperwork, he said it was helpful to have it. He explained to William that the language used in the document was purposely unclear, as loan sharks count on their borrowers not consulting a lawyer, since they need the money immediately. Mathew said the lenders use a sophisticated system. Every time the borrowers cannot pay their loan, the loan sharks convince them to take another loan to cover their debts. This way the borrower cannot break the debt cycle.
Anyway, after they reviewed William’s options, they came to one conclusion, William and Natalie had to sell their house. This did not come as a surprise to William as this was something he thought about on his way to see Mathew. Since they lived in a very good neighborhood it would be no problem selling it. In addition, they had no mortgage on their house which meant they could take the proceeds from the sale and pay down the loan. Just in case, Mathew thought they should take a loan from the bank against the house. At the end of the meeting, William felt Mathew helped him put things in perspective. They finished the meeting at noon.
William called Natalie and said they had to talk. He asked her to leave the children at her parent’s house as they need privacy. When William left Mathew’s office, he was more relaxed but felt gloomy. The sky was grey and covered with clouds, heralding the approach of a storm as though the weather was reflecting what was going on inside of him. While on his way home, William remembered there was a park not too far from Mathew’s office. He decided to pull over and go for a walk to clear his mind.
William was thinking about his kids who were very young and needed full time parents. Instead, he was at work a lot and Natalie’s top priority was gambling. Everything else was in second place for her. William wanted a better life for his children. He was pondering the many arguments he recently had with Natalie and came to the conclusion that he was unhappy with his marriage. His mother called when he was heading to his car.
Marie used to work at a bank and retired a couple of months ago. She was on vacation visiting her daughter who lives in Italy with her husband and their 3 kids. Marie returned the day before and called to say she missed him. She was in a talkative mood and spoke about her trip. She also said that she would like to see her grandchildren more often. Marie brought William’s kids some presents and asked when she could deliver them. There was silence on the other end of the line. William didn’t know what to say. When he broke the silence he said they would talk about it later. Marie, who knew her son, felt something was wrong.
It was the first time William did not sound enthusiastic about his mother visiting. Marie asked what’s the matter, then William thought for a moment, and decided his mother had the right to know what was going on in his life. Besides, he and his children would need her support. Therefore, he told her he would stop by later on that day to update her.
When William arrived home, he looked around and noticed that most of the furniture that was broken during the break in had not been replaced yet. He thought they probably never will…….
After Natalie was fired she found a part-time job working in a small tech company. The salary she earned was nowhere near what she earned in the past. Before Natalie started gambling, she used to purchase arts and crafts. She regularly went to galleries and acquired expensive and unique pieces of artwork. However, when Natalie slipped back into her old ways, she did not have enough money to play. She sold all kinds of valuable possessions from her house to pay for her gambling. Natalie would go to the flea market and buy fake paintings and artwork. She would replace the expensive pieces she sold with cheaper ones and told William she redecorated. William had no clue about artwork and did not ask any questions.
Nevertheless, Natalie knew a guy who she was friendly with whose name was Stefan. He used to be a heavy gambler when she started betting. Later on, he became a loan shark. After all her money sources dried up, Natalie took out a few loans from Stefan. This was something she tried to avoid as Stefan offered her loans at an extremely high interest rate.
He knew she desperately needed the money and took advantage of the situation. Natalie couldn’t pay the money back when the loans were due and kept asking for more time. She was sure the big score would come her way soon and then she would repay all her debts. But it never came. Stefan was unexpectedly patient with her at the beginning. Then he called her and asked for his money. He gave her one week to pay her debts.
After the week was up, she received phone calls at any time of day or night. People called and demanded she pay up otherwise she would regret it. Natalie was overwhelmed by the pressure. William would ask his wife who was calling in the middle of the night, and she would say it was a wrong number.
One day when the family came home from dinner at Natalie’s parent’s house, they realized their house was broken into. The inside of the house looked like a disaster zone. Their clothes were all over the house, and the furniture was broken. The food in the fridge was thrown all over the kitchen. Natalie knew who was responsible, but she didn’t say anything. They found out afterward that nothing was stolen.
A few days later when Natalie went to pick up her son from school, two men approached them and started talking with Steven. Then they whispered to her “you have a very smart boy. It would be a shame if something happened to him.” She froze and felt as though somebody hit her over the head. Stefan and his men intimidated her and made her life miserable. It haunted her. She couldn’t sleep at night. She barely ate and also suffered from anxiety. In addition, she was afraid to send her son to school.
Natalie was in an impossible situation. She couldn’t share what she was going through with William or with her family, and was close to exploding. She took it out on her family, which created difficulties between her and William. They barely spoke to each other and were fighting all the time. William suspected she gave in to temptation. He went to one of the Gamblers Anonymous meetings and saw his wife wasn’t there. When he spoke with one of the organizers, he was told she stopped attending meetings a long time ago.
William was frustrated. He went to work but couldn’t concentrate. His partner who was also his best friend noticed his mind was elsewhere. John asked if everything was ok, and for the first time, William admitted that he and Natalie were having problems. He did not go into details but John understood it was something serious.
Several days later William had three visitors at work. They looked like people Willaim would never associate with. The one who did the talking introduced himself as Stefan. He told William that his wife owes him almost one million dollars. William practically fainted when he heard the amount. He was speechless and Stefan kept talking.
He said he knew Natalie for over ten years since she started gambling. Because they were friendly, he gave her more time to repay the loan. When she couldn’t pay it off, the amount started to rapidly accumulate. Stefan showed William the original paperwork that detailed the loan signed by Natalie. He even gave him a copy. The paperwork he received was ambiguous. But if William had any doubts about the predicament they were in, they dissolved after seeing his wife’s signature on the documents.
Stefan gave him one week to pay the principal, which was $300,000, and another 3 weeks to pay off all the interest. Before Stefan and his thugs left William’s office, he threatened him. Stefan said he better pay on time otherwise there would be consequences. He also said everything was fair game including children………
William, who used to call Natalie on her mobile all the time, called her on her work line the next day. When he went to voice mail he pressed zero to speak with reception. He practically fell out of his chair when he heard the receptionist’s answer. Natalie was no longer working at the firm. William started to be suspicious and knew his wife hiding something. Like his in-laws, he thought she was having an affair. He was extremely upset but he didn’t want to share it with anyone yet. He went to see a private investigator. A week later the P.I. came back with his report. Natalie was constantly gambling. William wasn’t prepared for this information.
At the outset, he didn’t know what to do. Later on, he decided to confront his wife. At first, she denied it but when he showed her the report he got, and confronted with the facts she broke down and admitted she had an addiction problem. She started crying and said that after she gave birth to their daughter, she had postpartum depression. She felt lonely and he wasn’t around most of the time. She started gambling on the computer just for fun. But then she realized she needed interaction with people, so she started going to a casino once in a while and liked it.
She won a few times at the beginning and felt an adrenaline rush. Then she regularly lost money. But she couldn’t stop herself from gambling, as it provided her an escape from her depression. Natalie never mentioned the fact that she began gambling long before they met. She had too much to lose and couldn’t take the risk. She asked for forgiveness and said she never meant to hurt him or their children. William knew he wasn’t at home much to help her after she gave birth. He felt he was partly to blame for her addiction. Natalie also admitted she sold her car and the ring he bought her to pay off her debts.
She said she was afraid to tell him about her addiction as she was sure he would leave her. At the end of their long conversation, he made her promise to register with Gamblers Anonymous and get the help she needed. He promised he would stand by her side and support her. William loved his wife and didn’t want to break up his marriage. Shortly afterwards, she registered with Gamblers Anonymous. She started attending meetings and stopped gambling. For a few months, William would go with Natalie to every group meeting. He saw she was trying her best to change. She finally gave the children the attention they deserved.
At some point, Natalie told William he doesn’t have to come with her to the meetings, as she understood how important it was to overcome her gambling addiction. William agreed with his wife. In the beginning, he would call to check if she was keeping her promise. When he learned she was, he trusted her again and let it go. It went well for a while. Then she accidentally met one of her gambling friends who she hadn’t seen for a long time. The friend invited Natalie to her birthday party. At first, she didn’t want to go. She was concerned that all the progress she made would evaporate. But then she decided to challenge herself and go to the party.
She met many of her gambling friends there who were happy to see her. The atmosphere was warm and friendly. Shortly after Natalie arrived her friends started playing poker. She didn’t participate at first, but later in the evening, she was convinced by her friends that playing a few hands of poker wouldn’t do any harm. Then she realized how much she missed her buddies and the “high” she got from playing.
After the party, she occasionally didn’t attend the Gamblers Anonymous meetings. Instead, she went to gamble with her friends. Natalie gradually stopped attending G.A. meetings altogether. After she abstained from gambling for approximately a year, Natalie fell off the wagon. In the meantime, the sale of William’s company kept getting postponed. He was busier than ever, and would often ask Natalie how things were going at the meetings. She said she was slowly making progress and her need to gamble was declining.
William was pleased to hear that his wife’s condition had significantly improved. He felt he could trust her again, which was a big mistake….. Natalie’s life was spinning out of control again. But this time she went too far…………
William was working on his new startup at that time with his best friend John. They frequently travelled out of the country to recruit investors for their company. Natalie, who was on maternity leave, took advantage of her husband’s absence. She would drop off her oldest son Steven at kindergarten, take the baby with her, and go to gamble at one of her old buddy’s houses. As long as this group of gamblers had enough participants, they would gamble not only at night, but also during the day.
Natalie would play for hours and sometimes she forgot to pick up her son from kindergarten. Her son’s teacher would call her and ask where she was. The teacher would tell her that all the children in the kindergarten had already been picked up, except for her son. Natalie could hear Steven crying in the background and instead of running to pick him up, she would call her mother and ask her to do it. Many times Natalie would leave Steven at her parents house after his bedtime due to her gambling. When she finally appeared the boy was sleeping. After she stopped breastfeeding the baby, Natalie often left both of her children at her parents house and then disappeared. She would show up at the end of the day usually tired, moody and impatient, as she lost money that day.
Her parents were upset with her and said she was neglecting her children. They would demand to know where she was. Natalie would have all kinds of excuses that they didn’t believe. Her parents were sure she was having an affair. They were worried that one day she would lose William and maybe her children as well. When Natalie took her children home, they were already showered and fed by her parents. All she needed to do was put them to bed. William, who often worked late, felt guilty as when he came home, his wife looked exhausted and his children were asleep. He thought Natalie was exhausted because she was busy with the children all day. He promised Natalie that his startup would be bought out soon. Then he could spend more time with her and the children.
However, while Natalie was on maternity leave, she sold the new car William bought her after giving birth to their oldest son. She sold it when her husband was away. Then she told him she had an accident and the car was a total loss. She said she would sort it out with the insurance company. Later on, Natalie sold the expensive ring she received from William after the birth of their daughter. When William asked why she wasn’t wearing the ring, she said she developed a gold allergy. She also took a number of loans from the bank just to finance her addiction.
Natalie and William had separate bank accounts and another joint expense account. Natalie tried hard not to empty their joint account. Therefore William didn’t know about his wife’s activities. Anyway, Natalie returned to work after her daughter was six months old, not because she wanted to but because she desperately needed the money. She changed a lot, from being reliable and conscientious to being irresponsible. She was frequently absent from work and regularly late. Her boss expressed his dissatisfaction with her behaviour and said he would let her go if the situation didn’t change.
Anyhow, at some point William realized that Natalie was using her mother’s car for a long time after the so-called “accident”. He thought his wife might not have time to follow up with the insurance company and decided to call them himself. Then he found out that Natalie never filed a claim with the insurance company. He was shocked to hear this and demanded to know why she didn’t put in a claim. Natalie said that she was distracted and William told her he was willing to do it. She panicked and sounded confused when she heard his offer. Surprised by her overreaction, William finally recognized there was a problem.
The next day William decided to come home early from work to help with the children and found no one home. He went to his in-laws and found the children there without their mother. It was the same story the next day and the day after……. Natalie’s mother, who tried to protect her daughter, always had an explanation of why she wasn’t there. She would update her daughter immediately after William would leave with the kids. Natalie would show up at home half an hour later with a few bags of groceries.
One day William picked up his son from kindergarten. The boy who was so happy to see his father, said that he was always the last child left at the kindergarten when his mother came to pick him up. It was as though a light turned on in William’s head when he heard what Steven said. He was angry and frustrated. William asked his son what he usually does with Mommy after she picks him up. The boy said she takes him to his grandparents and then leaves…………………….. 😦
With Experience Comes Wisdom 