Youngest of 10 reaches her limit with bully siblings
Aries (March 21-April 19)
You might need to slow down a bit and take some personal time for yourself. You seem to be acting like a firecracker with no fuse and endless pop. Taurus (April 20-May 20)
Friends could make the day busy for you, which might force a reorganization of plans. Take a moment to reflect on what is very important to you. Gemini (May 21-June 20)
Others will be more impressed with your actions and decisions than they let on. You could be bombarded with questions, but they simply are wondering about the decisions that got you where you are. Cancer (June 21-July 22)
You might decide to combat your overactive imagination. You might think you’re calming your mind, but you still will be tapping into your intuition. Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)
Relate to a loved one directly. You might discover that this person seems to be distracted. Yes, this might be true, but he or she likely is thinking about you. This year you have a strong concept of what you want from life. Sometimes being too practical stops you from achieving your full potential. Remember what you want. Financially, you will either come up with an incredibly good idea or you will have a tendency to have money around you. If you are single, you already might have met someone who could be very special to you. Enjoy the connection the two of you have. If you are at tached, you will have a ball with your sweetie during the next seven months. This period will be significant. PISCES helps you spend your money if you are not careful.
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Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)
Others dominate in a way that might surprise you. Understand that you can’t compete with them for attention. Make that OK, and use this period for you. Catch up on a good book or relaxing to soothing music. Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)
You might be inspired by someone else’s ideas. Test out the validity of these concepts on a couple of your friends first. These people have taught you how to respect di�erent points of view. Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)
You might feel as if you are in your own little bubble right now. Some of you will funnel this energy into a creative project or a romantic moment. Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)
Generally, you’re a sign that loves adventure. Today, however, you might be content staying home. You have a lot of ground to cover, and you will be better o� where no one from work can bother you. Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)
You have a very strong imagination, and sometimes you use it without realizing it. You’re unlikely to share this well of ideas with others. Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)
People often describe you as being quirky and independent. Today is no exception, as you pull apart a situation and look at it from various di�erent perspectives. Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)
Whatever you feel today, you feel it 100 percent. Sometimes your feelings become intense, especially if you don’t share them. Today a brand-new world seems to open up.
Jacqueline Bigar is at www.jacquelinebigar.com. Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers.
The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to
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Dear Annie: I am the youngest sister of 10 siblings. Over the years, five siblings have died. You’d think we would try to be closer after such awful losses. So when does the bullying stop?
I have tried to be an upstanding sister and aunt, but no matter how much I contribute my money, time and empathy, they think it’s OK to belittle me and encourage their kids and friends to do the same. I never talk trash about my sisters. Actually, I speak very highly of them in front of and behind their backs. They do not return the favor.
I’ve put up with the “little sister syndrome” for decades and am quite tired of it. It’s worse when they get their friends to gang up on me.
At last year’s Christmas party, my sister’s best friend said I was the “screw up” of the family in front of everyone and not one person stood up for me. My sister’s mother-in-law snickered at some other nasty comment someone made about me.
I have decided to limit my contact with my siblings and avoid them altogether on holidays, since I become everyone’s target. They don’t think their actions are wrong or hurtful. I’m done with being the nice sister just to be thrown under the bus and run over repeatedly. They say I’m “too sensitive,” but if someone treated them this way, they would fall to pieces. I thought time and maturity would soften this behavior, but it’s just gotten worse. Any suggestions?
— Sister in Situation
Dear Sister: It’s too bad your siblings haven’t managed to grow up, but not everyone does. This is the family dynamic they are accustomed to, and not even the deaths of five of you have altered it. Ten children is a lot, and in some families, kids feel the parents are neglecting them in favor of a younger sibling. This could be how things began, but it no longer matters. You get to decide how to handle them now.
Try talking to each sibling individually. Say that you love and value them, but you are tired of being mocked and hurt. Ask them to be more aware of the way they treat you, so that your remaining years together can be happy and loving. Give them the opportunity to change. But if they are unwilling to work on this, it makes sense for you to see less of them.