– Mom called. She’s complaining about life again. She’s really tired of my brother’s family. – Igor said, washing the dishes.
“Well, everyone gets what they deserve, right?” I responded, putting food into my husband’s work bag.
“I’m just tired of listening to the noise of the children, how cramped it is for them all in the two-room apartment.” Igor began to dry the plates.
– I don’t understand at all what endless problems Lesha has. He should have changed his job a long time ago and moved into a rented place, rather than living with his mother, three and his wife. – She closed the container and put it in the refrigerator.
Such conversations happened often in our house. Igor and I got married five years ago, and all this time I only heard how hard it was for my husband’s older brother. The hardship was that he married a quarrelsome woman, immediately had three kids, he was constantly having problems with work, and had nowhere to live. What they were thinking when they had children, I could not even imagine. But one fine day, Alexey with Maria and their three offspring showed up on my mother-in-law’s doorstep and announced that they would now live with her. Irina Semyonovna could not kick out her son and grandchildren, she let them in, and repented a hundred times for her rash decision and her kindness.
My mother-in-law was already over sixty, she wanted peace and quiet, but the boys-grandchildren grew up restless and noisy, like all children. Of course, the kindergarten saved us, but the evenings turned into endless games, in which mainly grandmother was involved. The parents tried to snatch a minute of their own personal time – Masha hid in the bathroom, Lesha sat down to play computer games. Irina Semyonovna, in order to somehow take a break and reboot, came to us with endless complaints about life. It was true that she was humanly sorry, but both my husband and I understood perfectly well that my mother-in-law was to blame for what was happening to her, herself.
Besides, Lesha and his family had been living with Irina Semenovna for almost a year, but he had done nothing to move to a rented place. He was happy with his meager salary, while his wife had been sitting with each child for four or more years. His mother-in-law was really tired of the apartment filled with noisy kids, where she no longer had her own corner.
Just when Alexey and Maria had their youngest son, my grandmother passed away. She never complained about her health, even in her eighties she managed to manage the dacha on her own. She weeded and watered the numerous beds herself, planted and dug up potatoes, and every autumn she made so many preparations that there was enough for everyone. When she passed away, it turned out that my grandmother had registered the dacha in my name. I was her only and beloved granddaughter, and my parents had no need for their own land.
Mom and Dad were still working, they had no desire to mess around with the greenhouses, which they talked about many times at family gatherings. So grandma decided that my husband and I would need it more. Igor was a jack of all trades, and soon we arranged everything so that we could live at the dacha in winter. We covered the spacious house with siding, improved everything inside, and installed all the amenities. It was not cheap, but Igor and I both worked and earned enough to invest in a country house and a plot of land. I happily bought all sorts of bushes and seedlings, so that in the summer the garden was full of plants that generously gifted us when the time came.
In the summer we moved there to live – fresh air, a river and forest nearby. And it was less than an hour’s drive to the city, no problem getting to work. Sometimes relatives came for a barbecue – not too often, fortunately. They didn’t help much, but Igor and I managed quite well ourselves. My mother-in-law considered us well-off – a dacha, an apartment, and a car. She often asked for money to help her eldest son. Igor usually gave small amounts, although he was unhappy that Lesha didn’t want to change anything.
Somehow it happened in the family that the younger one grew up hard-working, active, ready to achieve everything in this life, and the older one believed that everyone owed him. The matter was further complicated by the children. Alexey believed that now everyone owed him three times as much, since he had three boys growing up. Children were indeed expensive these days, but parents should have known and thought about this when they had children.
This year we finished building a bathhouse, a gazebo and a second floor. My father helped my husband, so we did everything in one season. Dad was also a jack of all trades, and he and my husband always got along. Now our dacha was truly exemplary – everything you could want was there. Water, heat, you could go to the bathhouse, and drink tea at sunset in a beautiful gazebo. A friend gave us some chestnut and Manchurian walnut trees, which we planted near the gazebo. When they grow up, the carved beautiful leaves will provide thick shade on hot summer days.
My mother-in-law, when she came the last time, was so enthusiastic about what she had done that my husband and I just smiled. She didn’t have a dacha, but she always dreamed of one, according to her. But she wasn’t invited to hers too often either. Yes, I had a good relationship with Irina Semenovna, but her guardianship of her eldest son always irritated me.
Now, in the fall, we wanted to make insulated chicken coops and raise chickens. The plot was large, so we could afford a lot. Many people here kept geese and larger animals. Igor and I discussed many times that we would not be able to afford a full-fledged farm. But small things, like chickens, to have their own eggs and meat – quite possible. My husband had already bought some wood for the flocks, looked up how and what to do on the Internet, talked to neighbors who already had experience keeping poultry.
Here, almost every yard had at least one person in the summer, and the dacha settlement was increasingly resembling a full-fledged village. We didn’t dare spend the winter here – it’s difficult after all. Your own house constantly requires work and effort. In winter, you have to clear snow every day, which is not very convenient when you work five days a week. That’s why we only lived here until October, and then moved to the city. Although we planned to try to stay here at least once for the winter. Maybe we were afraid in vain. Others live here, and don’t worry. We wouldn’t have rented out the apartment anyway – we didn’t want to see strangers in our house. We would have paid the minimum for utilities. In the village, this was very cheap. Heating was less than two thousand a month with a gas boiler, even in the coldest months.
And we were already planning our own children for next year. After all, Igor and I had been married for a long time, and we wanted to continue. We talked about it many times, and even saved up some money for the first time. Children are about responsibility. You can’t just make three of them and expect them to grow up like burdocks by the fence. You need to feed them, clothe them, and teach them. It’s all simple for Lesha – he shows up at his old mother’s with a bunch of kids, and it’s as if that’s how it should be. But Igor and I calculated and thought everything through. It’s clear that it’s impossible to foresee everything. But you need to strive for it.
Lately, my mother-in-law had been coming to visit us very often. There was no end to her complaints about life. She lived in cramped quarters and in resentment. She did not like her lazy daughter-in-law, she was tired of her grandchildren, her son could sometimes answer her very sharply, which offended Irina Semyonovna. She wanted peace and quiet.
She promised to come tomorrow too, to have some tea and talk. This time, “talk” sounded weighty from her lips. Apparently, it really was something important. I cooked some fish soup with cream, cod and basil for her arrival, and baked a jellied pie with cabbage and minced meat. It always turned out amazingly tender and aromatic, and my husband and I ate it right away in one day.
As promised, Irina Semenovna arrived in the afternoon. Ruddy from the cold autumn wind, she took off her coat and went into the kitchen. Today was Saturday, my husband and I were both at home. Igor helped wash the floors while I made a pie. He did not divide housework into women’s and men’s, as many men liked to do. He understood that it was hard for me too, because I worked. He always helped, tried to make my life easier. I understood how lucky I was with Igor, and always sincerely thanked him for the housework and support.
Irina Semyonovna took a big sip of sweet tea with milk, endured the Moscow Art Theatre puzuza, and:
“We will give your dacha to my son, he has a family, he needs it more,” the mother-in-law declared.
– We have a family too, and I inherited the dacha from my grandmother. – I objected, having recovered from the initial shock. – Lesha is already forty years old. He could have done a lot during this time and gotten back on his feet. But your son prefers to live with you, with everything ready, with numerous children and a wife who also does not want to work or help you with the housework.
– Vera, don’t be smart, just do as I say! He’s your husband’s brother, are you obliged to respect him?
— For what? Because he doesn’t want to get up from the couch until he’s forty and is only capable of having children? I don’t respect that, forgive me. My husband and I worked for three years, running around to improve our summer house and the plot. That’s what I respect – we didn’t bother anyone, we went towards our goal. We never asked you for anything. And now you’re suggesting that we give all of this to your son? No way! He didn’t paint a single board there, and he wants to get everything, as always, for free! — I was getting angrier and angrier.
– Mom, you are suggesting the impossible. We need this dacha ourselves. We are planning to have a child next year, the whole family with the little one will go there. – Igor joined the conversation.
– You’ve lived so many years, and you haven’t even gotten a cat! And Leshenka already has three.
– Even if there are seven on the benches! It’s not our concern, Irina Semyonovna. – I said.
– I understand everything with you. You can’t ask for snow in winter. Live as you know!
The mother-in-law rose from the table, without finishing her tea, and went down the hallway. Throwing on her coat, tying a scarf on her head, she quickly put on her shoes and left, whispering something else to her youngest son. Igor returned, not at all upset.
– No, what impudence! Give them the dacha! They only came there for shashlik, and even then at our expense. They never offered to help – just “give” and “give” for free, vegetables, and a vacation, and that’s it. And now they’re letting us live, too. – I said indignantly to Igor.
– Don’t even mention it, let him be offended now. Water is carried on angry people, – the husband responded. – Let’s eat, or something. Otherwise the whole house smells of fish soup and pie.
I smiled, opened the oven, checked with a match if my aspic was ready. It was baked perfectly. We ate and chatted, dreaming of a son or daughter.
The mother-in-law, offended, really disappeared from the radar. She did not ask for money to help Alexey and her grandchildren, did not write or call. I knew from a neighbor that her son and his family were still living in Irina Semyonovna’s apartment. We celebrated the New Year at the dacha – we moved there for a whole week. As it turned out, the winter was not so snowy this year, and dacha life did not turn into endless clearing of paths. The winter weekend was a success. We grilled fish, walked a lot, decorated the Christmas tree that grew right next to the house, hung bright garlands outside. The winter was warm, windless. If it snowed, it was short-lived and did not cause any special troubles.
When I got home, I found out that we would soon become parents. I told my husband about it at dinner, and Igor was sincerely happy. We started to arrange the nursery, and these chores inspired and delighted us. I bought a crib with colorful sides, on which funny penguins on white ice floes were embroidered, and chose bedding for the future baby. We didn’t know yet who we were expecting, but it didn’t matter – a daughter or a son. We would have loved anyone, because it was our child. My mother-in-law now went to complain to the neighbor, and did not change her anger to mercy, even when Gena and I returned from the maternity hospital.
Genka was born exactly on time – with chubby cheeks, funny protruding ears and blue eyes, like all babies. Now my husband and I have begun a new happy life, which our son has changed a lot. There were enough worries with him, but Igor helped a lot, and I was once again convinced that I married the best man in this world. Happiness is in the little things, in simple decisions and simple deeds.
But it is impossible if you do not take responsibility for your comfort, for yourself, for your family and for your relationships with people around you in this life. All this did not appear out of nowhere for Igor and me – we earned it all through hard work, decisions and a willingness to take responsibility for the consequences. Lesha continued to live with his mother, dumping his wife and three children on her. He was happy with everything. But this did not concern Igor and me, we had our own little world in which we built and built our happiness.
