\u201cIsn\u2019t it time you got a job, Tara?\u201d yelled Wendy from the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tara clenched her fists and her nostrils flared as she tried to control her breathing. Her head was throbbing from the binge drinking session with Will last night. She\u2019d taken Will\u2019s advice to drown her sorrows literally. Her credit card took a beating from shouting drinks for half the bar and her aunt\u2019s yelling felt like a bowling ball was rolling back and forth in her skull.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She took a deep breath and yelled back into the kitchen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have an interview on Tuesday!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou seem to go to a lot of interviews, love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The barb stung Tara and her cheeks turned blotchy red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTom and I had such high hopes for you Tara. You were such a bright child.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The family has replaced the \u2018Bright Child\u2019 label with \u201cStrange Child\u201d in Grade Four. A tear escaped down the side of her face, as she wrestled with the guilt and shame that these conversations evoked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOne\u2026 two\u2026 three\u2026\u201d She counted as she forced the air in and out of her lungs with her eyes closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wendy chose that moment to re-enter the living room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you having another\u2026. episode?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tara\u2019s stomach tightened. She opened her eyes to see a confused look on Wendy\u2019s face. She\u2019d seen that look a hundred times growing up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s called meditation, and it helps me to relax,\u201d Tara said, feeling the opposite of relaxed following this exchange!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just a strange thing to do in the middle of a conversation Tara.\u201d A frown crossed Wendy\u2019s face before she turned and left the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tara would add this exchange to a series of uncomfortable conversations with family members over the years. She\u2019s always been the black sheep of the family which she\u2019s come to accept early in life. The thing that really pissed her off, was that the family never tried to see things from her perspective. They cast a blanket of judgement over her head and hoped she\u2019d simply disappear!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tara did what any strong twenty-eight year old female would do; exactly the opposite of what they wanted! She intentionally used her bright mismatched clothing to draw attention to herself when she was in the company of her extended family. The fire engine red beanie with two pom poms was a classic example. It was a completely unnecessary piece of clothing to wear on a 28 degree day in Melbourne. Her face was bright red from overheating. And yet, she was completely satisfied with the effort, when Wendy\u2019s gaze halted on the top of her head this morning. She imagined it would have been the same reaction if she was wearing reindeer antlers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNow, that\u2019s a thought,\u201d mused Tara adding the idea to her memory bank.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cIsn\u2019t it time you got a job, Tara?\u201d yelled Wendy from the kitchen. Tara clenched her fists and her nostrils flared as she tried to …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":3506,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[345,62,346,347,344,8,10],"class_list":["post-3505","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-character","tag-family","tag-frustration","tag-meditation","tag-michele-mitchell","tag-mountain-ash-chapter","tag-writing"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/raamin-ka-Cxag6Z_s8oI-unsplash-scaled.jpg?fit=2049%2C2560&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pff1uY-Ux","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":581,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=581","url_meta":{"origin":3505,"position":0},"title":"This One Time I Could’ve Been Killed","author":"Amanda Gambas","date":"March 1, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This one time, many years ago, when I was an inner city hipster, my partner Dan and I are out having a drink and a bash at pool at our local pub.\u00a0 The drinks and joie de vivre flow.\u00a0 Our pool shots are all dropping and none of the likely\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Memory Book"","block_context":{"text":"Memory Book","link":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?cat=120"},"img":{"alt_text":"Open door","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/joaquin-paz-y-mino-OAM2cNo5U9U-unsplash-scaled.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/joaquin-paz-y-mino-OAM2cNo5U9U-unsplash-scaled.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/joaquin-paz-y-mino-OAM2cNo5U9U-unsplash-scaled.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/joaquin-paz-y-mino-OAM2cNo5U9U-unsplash-scaled.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1442,"url":"https:\/\/mountainashchapter.com.au\/?p=1442","url_meta":{"origin":3505,"position":1},"title":"This one time I thought I was going to die at sea","author":"Amanda Gambas","date":"June 24, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The Florida morning is warm and the sea is calm. 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