15. Bipolar

My dad was always a bad father. He missed school events, stayed late at work to have affairs with his coworkers, and did drugs. He was diagnosed with as bipolar after my parents got divorced. He never called his children until he was having a manic episode and was feeling lonely in the hospital. We were always really supportive, even my mom. We tried to get him help and really wanted him to get better, but he didn't want to get better. He didn't talk to me for two years and then texted me on my birthday saying he loved me. I didn't immediately reply and an hour or so later there was a follow-up text asking me to come to court with him because he had been charged with driving under the influence and assaulting an officer. I had just finished law school when he sent this text. I wasn't worth talking to for years until I was able to help him. I haven't talked to him since.

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14. New Beginning

My father was physically and verbally abusive to my mother. When the divorce went through, the abuse shifted to us. My mom tried desperately to get sole custody, but the courts only saw the show my father put on. I learned quickly to just submit and it would be over with faster, but my sister never could bring herself to do that. Now I admire her bravery, but at the time I just saw her tactics as prolonging the torture.

At first, it was just verbal and emotional abuse, but after a couple of years, it became physical. One day, my sister stood up for herself and he kicked her down the stairs. That was it. We were 14 at the time and knew that things had just crossed a line. We fled to a family member's house and he drove us back to my mother's house across town (she had primary custody, but this was summer break when he was granted more time). Finally, we were allowed to speak to a judge and pled to be released from having to visit my father. After the courts ignoring six years of child abuse, my mother and stepfather were granted sole custody.

Heavy story, but it ends well. My stepfather adopted us as adults and the world knows him as our dad. He is a good man that makes my mother happy and has been the father we deserved. I have no idea what my biological father is doing and I do not plan on ever inviting him back into my life.

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13. Grandparents

To put it mildly, my paternal grandparents were not fond of my biracial niece. I'm not fond of adults who dislike my adorable lil pumpkin because of her skin tone. They were jerks before my niece was born, but their attitude towards her was the final straw.