Amuse bouche... the sisterhood

‘Oh that’s not how Heather likes her tea,” said Carrie to Sadbh. “Here, let me do it.”

Sadbh handed Carrie the cup of tea she had made for their mother-in-law, and watched it poured down the sink and the tea started again.

It was all very unsisterly, thought Sadbh.

When they were all at home in Dublin, she and her sister-in-law Carrie were good friends. Officially, they weren’t even sisters-in-law. They were married to brothers, Peter and Tony, so, officially, Sadbh was Carrie’s brother-in-law’s wife.

But they were close, so it was Carrie who suggested they just keep it simple and count one another as sisters-in-law.

It was nice, but it was only nice when they were in Dublin.

When they were at the husbands’ family home in Donegal, though, something changed. Carrie bustled around the place like a mini-mammy and constantly, subtly, pointed out that Sadbh was some sort of eejit. It wasn’t sisterly at all, at all.

Peter told Sadbh not to let it get to her. He tried explaining that Carrie had seniority, what with being married to Tony for five years, compared to the two years Sadbh had been part of the fold.

Sadbh had pointed out that this was ridiculous. Where were they — Salt Lake City? Were she and Carrie sister wives, and was Carrie wife number one?

Peter had laughed, but Sadbh wasn’t joking. Then again, Peter had a bit of a personality transplant himself when they returned to the bosom of his family.

At home in Dublin, Peter was a great cook. He was much better than Sadbh, more adventurous, more skilled, far better at tidying up.

He changed once he came in the door of his mother’s house, though, and so did his brother. They turned into two teenagers, who lolled around, letting Heather, their mother, do everything for them.

Heather cooked their dinners, cleared up after them, practically picked out their clothes.

What Heather didn’t do, Carrie did. She didn’t just do for her Tony, though, but for Sadbh’s Peter, too. And Peter let her. He tried to reassure Sadbh that it was only because Carrie had been around forever and knew them all so well.

And that was exactly the point, Sadbh thought. Carrie would always have been around longer; would always have the upper hand.

“Would you like a cup of tea, too?” Carrie asked Peter. “I have one just the way you like it.”

“You’re a star,” Peter said to simpering Carrie.

So, so unsisterly, Sadbh thought.