My girls have kind of been exposed to Straight once removed. My father and my ex's parents were relentless with using Straight and the court system, 3 times successfully to take the kids away(using a Straight board member as their atty.) ....and if they couldn't to harass us if we weren't living by Straights expectations. The kids obviously picked up on so much of the fucking paranoid and angry atmosphere. I felt like my only defense against it both for myself and them was to be pretty open about everything. I really didn't have a choice I guess with what the grandparents were doing with all the fucking psychologist visits, HRS inspections and and hoops to jump through. But I tried to find and maintain as much as possible some feeling of balance. It was hard. My entire family and support system were fucking Straight people and my perception of reality and theirs were skewed to say the least. They've ended up living under somewhat of a microscope for a lot of their lives and it sucked but I think, at least partly, because my husband and I tried to be grounded and realistic with them to counter the insanity that they've come through it all pretty well. They've gone through their periods where they've scared the fucking. shit out of me and made some of the most completely fucking boneheaded decisions but it looks like they're doing what most people do......growing out of it. Goddamn, it took my oldest 6 years of dating an asshole and consequently hangin out with other assholes that she cut herself off from all but that isolated little world which was a lot of the time pretty fucking out of control in all the ways that make parents sit bolt upright in a cold sweat. I'm getting way off here but it just feels good to see them growing up and merging into adult life the way you're supposed to. With support and confidence to go after the life they want.. Warts and all. I don't give a shit what they end up doing with they're lives as long as they're happy, idoing what they want and on their terms and I've had to fight so hard against all the naysayers and doomsdayers to try and instill that in them. I think what I've ended up with due mostly to the fact that they're just fucking awesome people, is some pretty confident, open and happy kids on the brink of their lives. What a concept, huh?
