For over a month, I've had a houseguest, staying in the tiny cottage on my land.

She's an old friend, dear to our hearts, and we're helping her in her desperate time of need.

She's in the midst of a very painful mess in her 2-decade-long marriage.

Every day, for hours, she comes to visit, and details the latest installments of her husband's perfidies and reprehensible behaviour. (She's in constant phone and email contact with "back home")

While visiting me, usually in there somewhere, she begins to cry, and starts talking about killing herself.

well, yesterday, I'd finally had enough.

Here's what I said to her:

"Look, my daughter attempted suicide the day after her 16th birthday... she took a massive overdose of Fioricet, nearly died, was in a coma for 3 days, and barely made it."

"It took a DECADE of hard work to put her back together into a happy, fully-functioning adult, with a joyous life, a fulfilling relationship, and much hard work to heal the emotional trauma in our family."

"Because of all that, I don't want to even THINK about finding you at death's doorstep, or deceased."

"So, I would appreciate it if you would please STOP talking about killing yourself on a daily basis."

"If you're serious, then you need to go get some help, I am not able to give you the support you need at this time, I am too sick with MS."

"And if you're just being dramatic, or "joking" about taking your own life, well, I'd really appreciate it if you'd STOP, because it's not an appropriate way to describe your anger and misery, and if you're "joking", well, it's NOT friggin' FUNNY!"

She apologized, and said she wasn't seriously contemplating suicide, and said she'd stop saying things like that, and that she didn't know about my daughter.



I hope I handled it right.