Docca Feel

Whew! Ol' Dr. Phil really opened up a can of Whoop-Ass on a couple today! His anger so early in the show (which softened slightly a bit later) took me by surprise. Usually, I see it coming. This time, I didn't. The show was about a couple that fights constantly. Three of their four daughters (the fourth being only 5-years-old) wrote to him for help, saying they think everyone would be better off if the parents divorced, yet they stay together after 22 years of feuding "for the children".

I was one of those parents, once. I was horribly unhappy in my marriage for a lot of reasons, but I didn't want our daughter to be from a "broken home". The home was already broken! At the ripe old age of 11, Megan told me that she thought we would all be healthier if her father and I got a divorce. (This was in the midst of his affair with his secretary...and it wasn't pretty.) That's all I needed to move on. It wasn't easy, but I did the best I could through the years. And yes, eventually, "we" were all healthier. (Can't speak for him, of course.)

I watch Dr. Phil because it is the only mentally challenging show on television. I get to guess what he will say to attendees...and he is pretty consistent. A number of times, he has affirmed what I learned, instinctively, about relationships, kids, and behavior, from life experiences. For one thing, he said that a step-parent cannot be a disciplinarian unless he/she was present in the stepchildren's lives from a very early age. I was a stepmother before I was a mother and figured that one out all by myself! He also talks about how children mystically make things their fault in their minds. I have suffered endlessly about what Robin and Ryan are thinking about their situation. Then, too, he talks about how controlling behavior is about insecurity. I sure understand that on many fronts! So I watch Docca Feel and learn about me. (Granddaughter Robin used to talk about going to the "docca". I miss her little mispronunciations. They were so cute!)

Indiana has now officially met the record books with the driest August on record. I think they said we had 1/3rd of an inch of precip at the beginning of the month. Haven't had anything since. Even the weeds are dying. Grass is crispy and brown. Think I'll water the perennials, but I think it's too late...