MerrinDonahue.com

Oprah always says “You never know who’s living next door to you”. Well, I actually do. I’ve known for quite some time, and while I’ve tried my best to do the right thing, it hasn’t had any impact whatsoever. You see, the man that lives behind us beats his wife (and maybe his kids, but I know for sure that he beats his wife). I’ve called the police on him in the past, but still, it continues.

We live in a great neighborhood. We have wonderful schools, and friendly neighbors. People like to joke that we live in Stepford. And then…..There’s that one house. The yard is scraggly, the house needs some paint, the driveway is cracked and crumbling. You might drive by it and never give it a second thought other than “Wow. That place needs a little work”. What you don’t realize is something that I know to be true. Sometimes, things get ugly inside those walls. There is a lot of screaming. Some hitting. Ugliness.

Recently, our idyllic little neighborhood has been thrown into chaos. Twice in the past three weeks, in fact. Police have been called, people have gone to jail, someone has been hurt. And yet……
She’s still there. With her children. For a time, he was nowhere to be seen, but lately, he’s been back. Sunday, there was screaming. She was still there. I understand the cycle of abuse. I fully comprehend the thought process of the victim. I get the rationalizations. BUT. There are two kids involved, and that alone should be impetus enough to force a change.

It makes me unbearably sad. And tired. I am tired of listening to the dirty little secret of someone else’s life (and it gets so loud that you have no choice BUT to listen). I am tired of feeling helpless to do anything, and I am tired of feeling like it’s my responsibility. I am tired of wanting to yell at the top of my lungs for her to GET OUT NOW.
And I’m more than a little scared. This guy defines the word “unstable”. It really is only a matter of time until he becomes a headline. And there’s no telling how many people he’ll take with him.