Today I want to share some of the mistakes I made in my life and also make everyone aware of its consequences. 20 years ago, my wife got married and came to my house as my daughter-in-law. I was the beloved son of my parents and my parents, siblings were everything for me. After my wife came to the house, my parents, siblings used to misbehave with her and make fun of her. She was kept as a slave of the house. I also used to fully support them in all this. I never gave my wife the respect of a wife. Rather, according to me, she is the daughter-in-law of this house, so she should do the work of all the family members and keep everyone happy. If anyone says anything, she should never reply back.

Gradually, the situation became such that I knew very well that my wife was right, yet I used to prove her wrong and insult her in front of everyone. Sometimes, to please my family members, I used to even raise my hand on my wife. Due to which my family members used to feel very proud of me. My mother, sister and my brother used to look at my wife with mocking eyes and make her feel that look, your husband is in our hands. I also used to make my wife feel from time to time that my relatives are only and only my blood relations. Time was passing like this. With time, my sister got married. But her dominance was still intact on her maternal house like before and she left no stone unturned in harassing Bhabhi. After some time, my younger brother also got married and when all this started happening with his wife too, he did not delay and separated from his wife. He started living a peaceful life with his wife.  He knew very well what kind of relationship was there between me and my wife. Because he was also a partner in all this. That is why he did not want to spoil our relationship. My wife had gradually understood what her existence was in my house. That is why she became quiet. She did not speak to anyone. She just did her work and remained quiet. Even if it was not her mistake, she silently accepted it. We all were very happy that she behaves according to us, talks very limitedly. My attitude was still the same.

Time was moving at its own pace. My two sons were 19 and 18 years old. One day, father said goodbye to this world. Everything was still going on the same way. Mother started falling ill in the grief of father’s departure, and had become older than her age before time. Now she wanted someone to sit with her and talk. I used to be busy with my work the whole day and came home at night. My mother’s beloved daughter did not have any time for her mother. The younger son and daughter-in-law had distanced themselves from mother long ago. My wife had become silent. She was performing all her duties well, but did not open her mouth. Mother complained to me that tell the daughter-in-law to talk to me. I do not like it. I told my wife to talk to mother. Mother does not like it. Why do you remain silent? My wife looked at me silently and went away from there without giving any answer, as she often did.  I knew very well that I was responsible for her silence. But still I was a good son. I pulled my wife’s hand very forcefully and said, can you hear what I am saying? Now all your drama will not work. Mother is ill. You will not become a good daughter-in-law just by serving her. Entertain mother. Talk to her. Only then will she be happy. My wife again silently looked at me and my mother, but did not give any answer. As if she was saying in her mind, do whatever you want to do, I will never face you people. You people are responsible for bringing me to this condition. I was getting very angry and I raised my hand to slap my wife.

Just then my elder son came in front of me and grabbed my hand and pushed me back and said, enough Papa, now if you do anything wrong with my mother, no one will be worse off than me. By then my younger son had also come forward and he said, Papa, we have tolerated enough of your arrogance. You have ruined our mother’s life. If you make such a mistake in future, we will forget that you are our father. I could not believe that my sons could talk to me like this. Still I said, and you have forgotten that she is my mother and your grandmother, whom your mother, i.e. my wife cannot make happy even by saying a few words. My elder son said, we have not forgotten anything Papa, and whatever the situation is today, you and your family are responsible for it, not our mother.  We have not forgotten anything but you have forgotten that just like the sick woman for whom you worry a lot is your mother, similarly your wife, on whom you shout and raise your hand without any reason, that woman is our mother, and we will not tolerate any atrocities on our mother now. Saying this both of them took their mother by the hand and took her inside the room. While leaving my wife was looking at me with her silent eyes. As if saying that the condition of your mother today, in old age she yearns to talk to someone, after some time the same condition is going to happen to you too. Today my wife had shown me my place through her eyes, and I was repenting, on all the mistakes I had done. For which I was not going to get any forgiveness now and I had realized this by looking at my wife’s eyes.

A wife is the husband’s partner in happiness and sorrow. No one can take better care of a husband than a wife can. A husband feels his wife’s presence only in her absence. So if you are in my place, you must change.