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’t wrong.</p><p id="5b28">It was an embarrassment. The worst part of it all was that I suspected something like this might happen. I was trying desperately to hold my temper. My future husband finally lost it after attempting to be patient the entire time. He took his sister outside and proceeded to yell at her.</p><p id="2409">The party was over. No one was in any mood to continue — especially me.</p><p id="db31">I just stood there, incredulous. My future mother-in-law was crying. She had put so much work into cooking and decorating. I didn’t want to add to her despair by breaking down myself. My guests hugged me and tried to console me the best they could, while also trying to recover from the shock of what had just happened.</p><blockquote id="fd34"><p>Looking back, almost thirteen years later — I <b>should</b> have broken down. I <b>should</b> have walked that spoiled brat right out of my baby shower. It <b>was</b> bullshit.</p></blockquote><p id="fc95">I didn’t realize it at the time, but that baby shower could have been a meaningful experience for me. Now that I’ve attended numerous baby showers since my daughter was born, I see that they are events meant to make the new mom-to-be feel special and doted on — to <i>shower</i> her with gifts and encouragement.</p><p id="e197">Instead, I let a raging bully upstage my special day.</p><p id="91b8">These days, my now sister-in-law doesn’t speak to my husband and me, and vice versa. The baby shower episode was just one of many unpleasant interactions we had to experience with her over the years and, eventually, we became estranged.</p><p id="ba0a">One of these days I’d like to tell my sister-in-law how much I’ve thought about that day of the baby shower in recent years, and how much I regret not speaking up about her behavior at the time.</p><p id="8aa9">I didn’t think a baby shower would mean so much to me until I looked back. If I could go back in time, I would have planned another baby shower just the way I wanted it.</p><p id="6bb6">I didn’t speak up that day and I should have.</p><p id="bf49">Live and learn.</p><p id="4717"><b><i>Do you think baby showers are meaningful? Share your thoughts in the comments…</i></b></p><h2 id="15ff">You can show your love for my writing by leaving me a tip of your choosing at my PayPal, or by contributing monthly on my Ko-fi page! Thank you!</h2><h2 id="b39e">Want more reads from me? Keep scrolling…</h2><div id="9442" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/things-i-did-in-the-90s-that-seem-utterly-insane-now-205740c11cd1"> <div> <div> <h2>Things I Did in The ’90s That Seem Utterly Insane Now</h2> <div><h3>There were no cell phones. There was no internet.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*VAJb6r3JsOJyMOhNnZWP9g.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="4db7" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/i-met-my-ex-husband-for-breakfast-and-learned-this-valuable-lesson-b4339dcc8ff6"> <div> <div> <h2>I Met My Ex-Husband For Breakfast — And Learned This Valuable lesson</h2> <div><h3>Time tells.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*YMHlinVefcmPudhuV7I-0g.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="6a56" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/you-dont-get-ownership-of-grief-when-someone-you-love-die

Options

s-e1c1c7243509"> <div> <div> <h2>You Don’t Get Ownership of Grief When Someone You Love Dies</h2> <div><h3>This is an uncomfortable yet necessary sentiment.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*94PeIZUykZum1a0p)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="53b3" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/how-a-squeaky-bed-almost-ruined-my-marriage-e1dbcb6911d7"> <div> <div> <h2>A Squeaky Bed Almost Ruined My Marriage</h2> <div><h3>“I can fix it.”</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*dis53EGQxwB9scog)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="ef8a" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/i-almost-let-poor-body-image-ruin-my-hawaiian-vacation-53ffa5384714"> <div> <div> <h2>I Almost Let Poor Body Image Ruin My Hawaiian Vacation</h2> <div><h3>The only potential saboteur on this vacation was me.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*VijipoFA9g1aeIZG)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="421c" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/i-was-fired-for-not-making-a-tired-mom-spend-more-money-ef7636c0253d"> <div> <div> <h2>I Was Fired For Refusing To Make A Tired Mom Spend More Money</h2> <div><h3>Apparently, I was not a good fit.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*GlktLnG5ZIsdbWUA37zuCQ.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="cd9d" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-day-i-confessed-to-my-lovers-wife-7835317bef3"> <div> <div> <h2>The Day I Confessed To My Lover’s Wife</h2> <div><h3>My life changed for the better after that night.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*d36jSa44WgU81InHxqqMyA.jpeg)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><h2 id="489e">Still here? I have a podcast about being a stepmom. Check it out if you’re interested…</h2><div id="3de8" class="link-block"> <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fixer/id1485161397?i=1000647569343&amp;source=post_page-----e1c1c7243509--------------------------------"> <div> <div> <h2>‎The Pondering Stepmom Podcast: "The Fixer" on Apple Podcasts</h2> <div><h3>This week, I talk about stepmoms who feel like they are handling most of the problem-solving with their stepkids…</h3></div> <div><p>podcasts.apple.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*6VXVYhFb9ymbiL_B)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

Daily Digest from ILLUMINATION

Featured Stories Issue #64

Selected stories from 9,600 writers supporting 95,000 readers on ILLUMINATION

Image designed by Dr Mehmet Yildiz — digitalmehmet.com

Dear Readers,

Happy Mother’s Day,

ILLUMINATION compiled some interesting stories for you today. These pieces from our collection can inform and entertain you. External readers can access them via blogs on Word Press.

Thank you for reading the engaging stories shared by our creative writers. Our previous digests are accessible from this collection.

You may check this collection of book chapters in our special publication (ILLUMINATION Book Chapters) hosting published books from accomplished authors.

The primary purpose of ILLUMINATION Integrated Publications (IIP) is to give optimal visibility to content created and hosted on them.

We have new challenges for our contributors.

1,000 Short Posts in 100 Days

Short-Form Stories Not For Income But For Visibility. Think Of Them As A Tripwire

How to grow and become a top writer on Medium in three months: 100 Day Challenge For New Writers

An extended introduction to create visibility

Share your concerns and aspirations in a story

Please check our udpated conduct guidelines. This is particularly important for new contributors.

Please enjoy our fresh stories.

They’re Just Leaves

Adelia Ritchie, PhD

For Many, The Worst Disaster We Have Experienced Is The One We Are Living Through — The Pandemic

James Goydos, MD

Facebook Upheld its Ban of Trump

K. Scarborough

Insomnia

Rosa Diaz

Fighting A Fire On Your Stomach

Terry L. Cooper

Wrong Reasons

Sakari Lacross

Can You Read the Power of Silence?

Ann Venkataraman

Healthy Body Healthy Mind

Andrew Brewerton

Kindness and Courage Are Interlinked

Ali Hall

5 Tips For a Successful Business Communication Plan

Marcel Badia

Do you love to travel the world?

Karen Madej

Here’s What My 30-Articles-in-Less-Than-30-Days Challenge Brought Up

Boateng Sekyere

The Invisible Enemy Returns

Anita Sud

Consent and Personal Empowerment

Joanne de Róiste

I Still Remember My First Paid Month On Medium

Noah Nelson

5 Ways To Stop Being A Perfectionist And Start Enjoying Life

Lucia Landini

Searching Snowy Peaks — Ax- Les-Thermes

Misbah Ul Haq Syed

$215M raised with Equity Crowd funding in 2020–105% growth from 2019

Nishant Modi

Waking up Every Day at Different Times to See What Works Best

Sushmita Singh

Remaining Hopeful

Berna Tural

How Etherium’s EIP-1559, will change the Face of Blockchain For good

munazhe

The Fear of Doing Nothing

Holly Amann

Knowledge Is NOT Power

Zach W.

We Have No Clocks In Our Home and It Changed Our Attitude to Time

Liangcai Chen

My Friendly Familiar

Rachel Ramkaran (she/her)

Love for our children commands our hearts and souls.

Karen Madej

I greased a palm and cut the tape.

Tree Langdon

Writing my first book Short Form

Adonis Richards

There’s Something In The Air

Groupe Intellex

South Africans speak eleven official languages, but how?

Pakang Senosha

My Shin-jury

Shawn Ingram

Cellphone Poops Killed Philosophy

Amy Culberg

How To Improve A Relationship With Someone Who Hurts You

Ilana Rabinowitz

The Killer Of Greenbay

Anthony Jackson

Do We All Have a Feeling of What Life Is Supposed to “Be” Like?

Maddie McGuire

Do We Need a World Happiness Report During a Pandemic?

Mukundarajan V N

Repeating a Pattern of Dysfunctional Lovers?

Michele Grieve

Where is the Myanmar banking system at the begining of 2021?

AyeKyaw Hlaing

The Amazing Promise About Change Continues to Astound Me

Richard Armstrong

Strength Is All I Know

Sydney Koel

Mother

Kyomi O'Connor

This is Why Other People Shouldn’t Dictate Your Success

Anisa Nasir

How To Know When You Are On The Wrong Path

Ilana Rabinowitz

When You Should Not Trust What You Hear

Floyd Mori

The Aching Heart

Ananya Misra

Do You Believe in the Possibility of Other Beings On Our Plane of Existence?

Elle How

Mystery Blooms

Melanie J.

A Selection of Classics Every Writer Should Read

Veronika Kaufmann

Here’s Something Bad in Hopes of Something Better

A.X. Bates

You Did a Good Job!

JJ Sum

Company Coming on Cinco De Mayo

Terry Trueman

Get To Know The Tribes and Roots of Why Filipina are Mostly Beautiful

Elvie L

The Life of ‘Pie’

Carol Price

Fences

Ulf Wolf

Languishing

Ruks Moreea

Welcome to My World

Sheryll James

Why Abortion is a Woman’s Right to Decide?

Gurpreet Dhariwal

What’s Up, Choc?

Courtenay S. Gray

The 3 Problems That Make Dogecoin Such a Poor Cryptocurrency

Louis Petrik

So Far, Yet So Near

Harry Hogg

This Crafty Canine Played the Ultimate Power Move

Alex Cooper

Of Monsters And Healers

Merlin troy

Not Everyone Dealing With Vaccine Hesitancy Is An Anti-Vaxxer

Keara Lou

The Power of Adaptability

Warren Brown

Closed Doors

Lucy Dan 蛋小姐 (she/her/她)

Twenty-Five Years Since My Divorce and I still Remember My Ex’s Birthday

Linda Kowalchek

Day Tripping: May 6

Stuart Englander

Vocal Media Revised Their Platform So I Revised My Critique

Brenda Mahler

1,000 Short Posts in 100 Days

Dr Mehmet Yildiz

The Last Person to be Shot by Ned Kelly

Fred: Almost Famous

In the next 2000 years, we will live as robots perhaps.

Agnes Laurens

Have you lived and worked in a country where your identity was disapproved?

Dr Mehmet Yildiz

Writing Is Architecture, Not Interior Decoration

Nuno Fabiao

Clap Or Not Clap, That Is The Question

Neera Mahajan

My Latest Top 10 Stories on Medium

Dr Mehmet Yildiz

Why You Should Start A Journal

Ian Vanderlinden

Thank you for reading our stories.

Several new authors joined ILLUMINATION Book Chapters. You can enjoy chapters from their published books. Check them!

Many thanks to our editors who reviewed and published these stories for you. Our editors work hard to help our writers submit their best stories. They invest their precious time volunteering for the smooth publishing of stories every day. ILLUMINATION-Curated, ILLUMINATION, Dr Mehmet Yildiz, Brian E. Wish, PhD, Dr Ron Pol, Dr Michael Heng,Paul Myers MBA, Karen Madej, Joe Luca, Dipti Pande, Kevin Buddaeus, Kate Maxwell, Arthur G. Hernandez,Bill Abbate, Michael Patanella, Aurora Eliam, CMP, René Junge, Geetika Sethi, Ahmed Jamal, Britni Pepper,Selma,Earnest Painter, Dew Langrial, B. A. Cumberlidge. Lanu Pitan, Agnes Laurens, EP McKnight, MEd, CR Mandler MAT, The Maverick Files, Sumera Rizwan, Liam Ireland, Tony Young, Jr., Neha Sandhir S, Desiree Driesenaar, Stuart Englander, Ntathu Allen, Thewriteyard, Haimish Mead, Maria Rattray, Cristo Lopez, PhD, Dr Preeti Singh, Holly Kellums, Kristina Segarra, Yohanan Gregorius, Audrey Malone,janny’s heart, Sabana Grande, Jennifer Friebely, Zen Chan, Aamir Kamal 🚀🚀🚀, John Cunningham, [arlie] PEYTON, Georgia Dimitrious, Kim Petersen, Josh Balerite Acol, Noorain Hassan, BMS, Mallika Vasak, Ikram Al Mouaswas, Terry L. Cooper, George Blue Kelly, Scott Hughey (TheWriteScott), Claire Kelly, Tree Langdon

You can find editor profiles in this story.

Invitation to prospective writers

To join ILLUMINATION, ILLUMINATION-Curated, ILLUMINATION’ S MIRROR, ILLUMINATION Book Chapters, Technology Hits, and SYNERGY.please send a request via this link. We will help you succeed. 9,600+ writers contribute to our publications.

Please subscribe to our free newsletter and stay in touch with our progress and get customized content for your writing and reading needs. You can also subscribe and enjoy free Content Strategy, Development, and Marketing Insights shared by Dr Mehmet Yildiz.

Thank you for reading stories of outstanding writers compiled by ILLUMINATION-Curated, ILLUMINATION and Editor of Technology Hits

Please check Book Chapters from our accomplished authors on ILLUMINATION Book Chapters.

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