My husband prefers to eat from his mom than eat what I’ve cooked. On Saturdays, he would go to his mom and return with soup, and different kinds of stews. I wasn’t bothered because it reduced the workload on me. And I couldn’t blame him for his preference. After all, it’s his mom’s food he has been eating since he was born.

He saw me eating kenkey with some of the stew he brought from his mom and he told me, “Aren’t you enjoying it? This is a stew, not the concoctions you’ve been cooking in this house. You should go and live with my mom and learn how to be a woman.”

It hurt like a new sore on my skin but I let it go. He wouldn’t let it go. He said it in front of his mother. His younger sister was there. They all laughed. His younger sister said, “How difficult is a stew that you can’t prepare it? I’ll come home and teach you wai?”

I was burning with anger but I gave a fake smile. On our way home I asked if he was happy the way his younger sister treated me. His response was, “Where’s the lie? Put your pride aside and allow her to teach you.”

I’m not a bad cook. I may not do it like his mom but I do it in my way and it works. All my life, no one has eaten my food and has said something bad about it. His mom and younger sister haven’t tried my dishes. It’s a conspiracy theory he has sold to them that I’m a bad cook. Because of that, his mother doesn’t relate to me the way she used to.

I’ve allowed this to go on for so long until I felt enough was enough. One day when he sought to demean me by using his mom’s cooking prowess, I responded, “Maybe if you were a real man like your younger brother, you wouldn’t have been bothered about food the way you do. When did you meet your younger brother in the house collecting food from your mom?”

His younger brother is wealthy. He has two maids in his house who do the cooking and house chores so his wife doesn’t lift a finger. He’s always envious of his younger brother because everyone respects him more than they do him. He has told me once that he suspects his brother’s wealth wasn’t legitimate. He hates it that his younger brother is held on a pedestal when no one cares about him.

He got furious and shouted and insulted my generation for bringing his brother into the argument. He asked, “Do you know what he did for his money? It looks like you want to marry him instead so go.”

It looks like I hurt his ego so bad that he hasn’t been talking to me for a week now. During the weekend, he didn’t come back home and didn’t tell me where he slept. Low key I’m worried but I’m scared if I apologize, he would feel right and continue comparing me with his mom. What do you think?

— Eno 

This story you just read was sent to us by someone just like you. We know you have a story too. Email it to us at [email protected]. You can also drop your number and we will call you so you tell us your story.

******