Member-only story
Dilemma Street
My parents, Good and Evil had a bitter divorce when I was eighteen and the judge did not grant custody to either of them because I was old enough to choose to who to live with. It was a tough call for me as I sat in the courtroom watching them both chew each other out.
Evil was a great person to be with and we had many good times together. Evil always indulged my excesses. Anytime we were alone, Evil allowed me to eat a lot, drink a lot and very much agreed to anything I asked to do or longed for. We seemed to do everything in excess and I liked Evil because Evil was fun to be with.
Good was more reserved, always insisted that I be disciplined and learn to make the necessary sacrifices to reach my goals. Ever the mild-natured disciplinarian, Good’s favourite pastime was sitting on the patio, reading to me or discussing current issues. I liked Good because, somewhere within, I knew that Good had my interest at heart.
On my way out of the courtroom, I felt homeless and alone. The mental stress that accompanied moving my things was something I had never seriously contemplated. We had two houses on the same street, one opposite the other and identical in every sense. One was home, while the other was rental property. In the course of the ruling, the judge had ordered that the tenant who lived in the other apartment be paid off and both houses, on Dilemma Street, be…
