All in the Family

A few years later one of Auntie Lulu’s daughters, Jennifer, and her husband Wayne were divorced. Mary and Jennifer were good friends because they were about the same age and they grew up together in Hong Kong before Jennifer moved to Ohio with her parents in her late teens. Wayne knew Mary and her former husband, Paul, too as they met a few times in the United States in family gatherings. Upon learning the news, Mary e-mailed Jennifer and invited her to take a break in Hong Kong. Jennifer did come that Christmas and the two divorcees traded many laughs and sobs together.

About a year after Jennifer’s divorce the big surprise to the extended family came: Paul and Wayne had moved in
together as a same-sex couple in Seattle, Washington.

The news came via a phone call from Auntie Lulu from Columbus to Mary’s mom, Katy, in Hong Kong. Katy’s
face was red from shock and anger when she hung up.

“That son of a bitch married my daughter,” Katy muttered.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” Mary overheard part of it from her room.

“Did you know what your ex just did?” Katy came into the room.

“No, but I heard your first swearwords,” Mary couldn’t help but chuckled as her Mom was ever the proper lady and professional pharmacist who never uttered a foul word in her life.

“I could do a lot worse, I could kill him, I could kill them both! He and Wayne, your cousin Jennifer’s ex, just moved in together in your old house in Seattle as a homosexual couple!”

“I see,” Mary responded mildly.

“You don’t seem surprised.”

“Yes, Paul is gay. That’s why we divorced.”

“And you never wanted to tell me.”

“No, Mom, it’s his privacy.”

“Privacy my ass! He married you and ruined you!”

“Mom, I’m impressed with your French. Yes, he sort of. But I am not mad at him anymore. He struggled all his life dealing with a woman’s sexuality inside a man’s body. I was an accidental victim. He was kind and nice to me otherwise when we were together. He just didn’t know what to do himself.”

“You are incredible, my daughter. Mother Teresa couldn’t have been more forgiving.”

“I wasn’t at first, but I’ve come to understand it since then. I just didn’t know Wayne was gay too. I clearly didn’t notice anything going on between them. I am glad they came out of the closet though.”

“What? Mary, I don’t have anything against homosexuals. You know that. Ever since you were a little girl I taught you to be nice to people who were different from us, such as people of Indian and Pakistani descent who were frequently and wrongly called “ahcha 阿差.” You also asked me one time what the English word “faggot” meant. Your father heard our conversation and said that was the most disgusting thing. I pulled you aside and told you that your father was wrong, that you should never use that word, and that gays were just as good and as bad as we were. I think you’ve listened to me well and you are a very kind person. But how can you forgive what Paul did to you? Are you insane!”

“Mom, I’ve thought about my unfortunate life ever since the night I got married. Then I thought — both Paul and I thought — that we could be happily married without the intimacy between a man and a woman. But we were kidding ourselves. So after six years, it became clear to us that we should move on without further pretending.”

“I hear what you are saying, but I am still mad like hell!”

“I know, Mom. Maybe I shouldn’t have hidden the reason from you from the beginning. Two years after I was married, you asked me if I was thinking about having kids. Remember?”

“Yes, and you told me you were trying.”

“That was a lie. Paul and I never had sex. I am still a virgin.”

Mary knew she had to call Jennifer right away to comfort her, and each other. For some strange reason the stage play M. Butterfly written by David Henry Hwang came to mind. Now there were two Butterflies in the family, except they were both genuine women, only they understood their own unspeakable pain.

*** The End ***

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