Vile childhood lie tore my life apart
NOW MY NEMESIS IS BACK JANE O’GORMAN SOLVES YOUR PROBLEMS TODAY ... AND EVERY DAY
A CHILDHOOD prank ruined my life.
Now the individual who made me take the blame for something I didn’t do has moved into my neighbourhood.
He’s acting like it’s all water under the bridge but I’m angry and unhappy all over again.
When I was aged 10 a group of us went into town to buy sweets. What I didn’t realise is that one of the lads didn’t have any money.
We went into an old-fashioned shop run by an elderly lady. Not only did he steal chocolate and comics but cigarettes too – loads of them. He’d taken a shopping bag along especially.
He got caught. He shoved the bag in MY hands and blamed me for encouraging and bullying him. Like an idiot, I didn’t speak up for myself because I knew the boy’s dad was a violent thug who would have beaten him.
But being kind ruined my life. The shop owner’s son took me home and my own dad went mad. He accused me of bringing shame on the family and banished me to live with his horrible parents miles away.
I was forced to change schools. I lost my true friends and became resentful and disruptive.
My mum and dad divorced, then my mum died and my dad moved abroad without any of us ever being reconciled. I was saved by my wife, who picked me out of the gutter. If it hadn’t been for her parents taking me in, then I’d probably be dead by now.
Now the little thief is back in my face. The other day, at a neighbour’s party, he attempted to make a joke of the naughty stuff WE used to get up to. But his actions ruined my life.
My wife tells me to get over it, but I can’t. I want revenge.
How dare he pretend that his actions didn’t have serious consequences?
JANE SAYS: There’s no doubt that you were the victim of a terrible injustice. Clearly your parents were very unhappy and, I suspect, a lot of things were going on behind closed doors that you weren’t aware of and your dad took his frustration out on you.
Now it’s many years on and the real culprit has resurfaced. He doesn’t realise, and obviously doesn’t care, that you suffered so terribly as an innocent child. But revenge can’t be the way forward. You cannot allow yourself to become bitter and resentful all over again.
I don’t mean to sound flippant but try to count your blessings. Look at your wonderful wife and the life you have together.
Appreciate your freedom and your health and be thankful that you got through that whole wretched experience in one piece.
Your wife is right, you have to try to park this awful experience and appreciate the future. Too much time and energy has already been lost.
Arrange to speak to your nemesis face-to-face. Leave him in no doubt that none of what he remembers is funny. You cannot allow him to wind you up all over again.