ON TIES THAT BIND...

There are some bonds that you cannot break, and family has to be the strongest one. For better or worse. Its hard to describe the situation at hand, bearing in mind who some of the regular readers of this blog are. So I'll spare you the gory details. But it involves a particular person who has been rubbing people the wrong way. She - lets call her X - seems not to realise it, even though it has been pointed out to her, sort of. So eventually, the stories start making their rounds, eventually reaching a relative of hers. So.... now said relative is in the uneviable position of deciding what on earth she is going to do. She is friends with the people who are irritated. But X is family. Does she let on that she knows what's going on, and even if she does, what does she then tell X to do? Where should her loyalties lie, especially since she knows that X is in the wrong, and is in danger of not just compromising her reputation, but professional credibility as well. It's a tough situation. I have to admit that I put family above all else. No one messes with mine, and if you have something nasty to say, let it be known that even if you are in the right, I defend my family to the hilt, win the argument, and firmly put you in your place (even if I end up thwopping the offending relative on the head after - in private). The point is - no one messes with my family (any aspect of it), and doesn't pay heavily for it. But this is one conversation I would NOT wanna be having. Art