Greek Family
WOMAN WILL NEVER BE GREEK ENOUGH FOR HUSBAND’S FAMILY, ABBY:
I married a Greek man whose family never accepted me. Being young and naive, I tried everything fit in, converting from Catholicism to the Greek Orthodox faith, attending all family functions, including them our lives. It was never enough.
My husband and I traveled to Crete with his family to his relatives there, and some extended family members refused share the dinner table with me because I was not Greek. One those family members was a priest!
Our daughter, “Athena,” was four years later. What broke the camel’s back for me was a Christmas dinner when was 6. My father-in-law gave cards with $100 to the grandchildren of Greek heritage. Athena received nothing and cried for hours wanting to know her grandfather didn’t love her. My husband just tried stay neutral.
Abby, how far should someone have to to fit in with their husband’s family?
— IRISH AGAIN NEW HAMPSHIRE