My sister died, leaving behind two young children.
Mother begged me to marry her widower.
I got straight to the point.
“Your grandson is precious.
If he misbehaves, may I smack him?”
Mother nodded repeatedly.
“Of course.”
“Your granddaughter is delicate.
If she does something wrong, may I scold her?”
“No problem.”
“And my brother-in-law?
I’ve never liked him.
May I beat him up?”
Mother wiped the sweat from her brow.
“You’ll have to ask your mother-in-law about that.
I didn’t give birth to him, after all…”