The day before Thanksgiving three years ago was one of the hardest moments for me to live through and recollect. I cringe going through all the details of that day and writing it all out in detail. Here we go.

A few years ago, my family invited my new girlfriend to have Thanksgiving. This was a good opportunity for both the parts to finally meet for the first time. Keep in mind we are going to a small 6,000-person town and she is from a 20-million-person city.

She is out of her element in this farm town. She would poke fun at me for being a country pumpkin. I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS. I am an orange person with seeds inside me? Probably...

The hard part is that I needed to drive slow and steady for hours in the dead of winter in a rear wheel drive Crown Victoria. Along the way, we stopped at a McDonalds. As we enter the building I get a phone call.

I answer, “Hello”

My father says, “You might want to turn back.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Well. Your sister’s ex-husband committed suicide last night in front of a stop sign”

“Oh... that might put a damper on things.”

“You still showing up?”

“Yeah, we are already three quarters the way there.”

“Ok, be careful .” Click.

At this point, I needed to explain the situation to my newly founded girlfriend.

My sister's ex-husband was ex-military. He had extreme PTSD issues which is why they got a divorce. After the divorce, he felt he had nothing left and became depressed. He was always invited to our family gatherings. Now, he blew his brains out at a stop sign.

BY NOW I CAN SEE THE LOOK ON MY GIRLFRIENDS FACE IS “WHAT THE FUCK DID I GET MYSELF INTO.”

She asked, “Is this normal?”

I said, “Not completely, I mean we normally have some drama, but this is definitely new.”

Keep in mind she is from a highly educated family with maids, tutors, and gardeners. A family of prim and proper individuals that would look at my eating habits and say, “YOU EAT LIKE A TARZAN DONKEY.” so when I told her, “it looks like there was a suicide in the family” I understood she would be a little nervous to continue the journey to meet the family.