I wasn’t surprised when my daughter Debbie brought her college roommate home for Christmas. Sharon was a nice girl and didn’t have anywhere else to go; so, as a Christian family, it was right that we welcomed her for the holidays. My husband Nathan and I were, at first, relieved when Debbie, unlike her older sister Lucy, showed little interest in boys, but as she grew older, although it didn’t bother me, Nathan, a Baptist minister, hoped Debbie would find a nice young man, like Lucy, who was engaged and bringing her fiancé Ron home for the holidays.
On Christmas Day, after the meal, before we got up to clear the table, Debbie and Sharon suddenly clasped hands, much to my surprise. Debbie smiled nervously at us and said, “Mom, Dad, Lucy, Ron, Sharon and I are Lesbians, and we’re getting married.” The tension filling the room didn’t surprise me.
Thanks to GirlieOnTheEdge for inspiring the above work of flash fiction and video with her six-sentence prompt for this week in which the given word is “tension.” You can click here to participate in this week’s hop and read other six-sentence creations.
Photo Courtesy of Tess Anderson Photography
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New! Why Grandma Doesn’t Know Me
Copyright 2021 by Abbie Johnson Taylor.
Independently published with the help of DLD Books.
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Sixteen-year-old Natalie’s grandmother, suffering from dementia and confined to a wheelchair, lives in a nursing home and rarely recognizes Natalie. But one Halloween night, she tells her a shocking secret that only she and Natalie’s mother know. Natalie is the product of a one-night stand between her mother, who is a college English teacher, and another professor.
After some research, Natalie learns that people with dementia often have vivid memories of past events. Still not wanting to believe what her grandmother has told her, she finds her biological father online. The resemblance between them is undeniable. Not knowing what else to do, she shows his photo and website to her parents.
Natalie realizes she has some growing up to do. Scared and confused, she reaches out to her biological father, and they start corresponding.
Her younger sister, Sarah, senses their parents’ marital difficulties. At Thanksgiving, when she has an opportunity to see Santa Claus, she asks him to bring them together again. Can the jolly old elf grant her request?
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My Corner 
That is a tense moment, i do hope the family can handle it with grace. As i keep trying to tell people, you can disapprove of what someone does without disapproving of the person and you can still treat her/him with kindness, compassion and respect.
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You’re absolutely right. Family is family.
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Some of my best friends are gay!
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That’s great! A person’s sexual orientation shouldn’t matter.
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I can only imagine the tension at that dinner table. That was a good time of year to break the news to her family.
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Yes, and being in college, they’re adults who are pretty much self-sufficient and not dependent on their parents for financial support. When you’re in that situation, and there’s a chance your family may cut you off, that’s a good time to make such an announcement.
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