Obaa Yaa
In-laws are the problem In-laws are the problem
Dear Obaa Yaa,
Thank you for publishing my article with the heading above. I am back to answer your two questions.
Luckily, my in-laws are in their family house whilst we are in our own house. It all started when my husband started building a house.
I didn’t know they disliked me. I’ve always tried to play my role as an in-law.
But upon an attitude they developed, I have stopped.
Now, they come in groups to my house to insult me for no reason. My step daughter who is in Junior High School (JHS) 3 has been turned against me.
Now the girl only visit the house just to disrespect me and return to her aunties.
My husband mostly get angry over his family’s behaviour and exchange words with them sometimes. They insult him in turn, claiming I have cast a spell on him.
They are under the impression that my husband has transferred all the household properties to me, including two cars he has already registered in my name.
The situation is very painful and distressing. We are both worried.
My children are much worried because they can no longer visit the family house.
Obaa, let me hear from you soon, as this man needs to bless the marriage at the church.
Cecilia Antwi,
Mampong
Dear Cecilia,
Thanks for responding to our letter. The situation calls for a family meeting to resolve the issue once and for all.
Make a formal complaint to your family head and let him summon both families for a formal arbitration so that both parties can air their grievances to pave the way for differences to be ironed out.
You may also complain to your pastor to act in concert with the family head to make the summons a more effective one.
Dear Obaa Yaa,
We bumped into each other on orientation day as freshers on campus. I liked his smile, his choice of words, and charisma. I didn’t hesitate at all when he asked for my contact. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with a guy like this, I said to myself.
We texted more often, had conversations on phone, and our friendship literally grew very strong. We attended lectures together, studied together, hanged out together; everyone thought we were lovers.
He did everything for me—surprise dates, thoughtful gifts, pays my academic fees, and gives me a listening ear everyone would wish for.
One evening at a friend’s birthday party, standing in the middle of the audience, he proposed and asked me to be his girlfriend. I declined his proposal; this was because I have no feelings for him, and I just want us to be friends.
He is a man with good morals, so gentle, God-fearing, ambitious, a man every lady would wish for, but my heart just wasn’t in it. I wondered if love was supposed to be this complicated: the more he did, the more I felt like a friend, not a lover. He still wants me, but I want us to be just friends. What should I do?
Naa Kwarley, Kaneshie.
Dear Naa Kwarley,
This is a tough situation, and you’re handling it with both kindness and firmness.
Since you’ve already told him you’re not interested in a romantic relationship, it’s crucial to be clear and direct while still being respectful. I’d advise you to reiterate your feelings to him, emphasising that you value him as a person and appreciate what he’s done, but you see him more as a close friend. Make it clear that you hope you can still maintain a strong friendship, but it can’t be anything more.
It’s essential to be prepared for him to need space or time to process, so be patient and understanding.
Dear Obaa Yaa,
I am a regular reader of your highly esteemed paper and I would like to know whether some amount of money is paid to those who write short stories for publication on the children’s page of your Weekly Spectator.
I wrote a short story which was published last month, and my friends who saw it told me that a token will be paid to anyone whose story is published.
A.J., Kwabenya.
Dear A.J.,
We don’t pay for short stories published on our children’s page. That opportunity is to encourage school children to develop the habit of writing. We believe that by publishing their short stories, they’ll be encouraged to write more.
The paper is open to everyone who wants to share ideas or write about a concern.
