Enemy of the state.

My neighbour had a hip replacement surgery last week. On the day she was discharged from the hospital, her sister in law came all the way from Tasmania to be with her and help her recuperate.

Had this event happened in my family, my mother would have never gone to help her brother’s wife. Because in Kerala, sisters in law are considered to be enemy of the state, the evil witch who came to wreck havoc in the family and take the loving caring brother away from everyone who loved him.

My mother would have said, it is the responsibility of the children/husband to take care of their sick mother/wife and washed her hands off. ( makkalu nokkette)

In my neighbour’s case, she has one son living 10 minutes away and another 30 minutes away. Her sister in law only came in to the family 10 years ago ( second marriage). Yet she spend her money, flew all the way from Tasmania to help her husband’s sister.

Why are we so different?

6 thoughts on “Enemy of the state.

  1. It is not just in Kerala, it happens in almost every home. It takes a good heart to realize that you have new members to embrace & love.

    • S: And it really is not that hard to accept a new family member. Sadly, we just can’t accept a new person as part of our family.

  2. Also, in my opinion, brothers always have issues with their sister’s husbands. They are never good enough to be with their precious sisters. The two men I know – my brother and my husband – they are vastly different, they both had the same issue.

    • URT: sometimes, when my neighbour’s brother come to visit her, I see the two old men ( her brother and husband) sitting outside and gossiping and drinking wine. They are best mates. Is it the way we are raised that makes us behave differently?

Leave a Reply to Sarah Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *