My mother and I were talking about the possibility of her coming to our place for Christmas. I told her we are now and alcohol-free family now and that means no booze in the house, both because I am a recovering addict/alcoholic, and because my husband and I recently converted to Mormonism, which we try to keep the things we do not want in our lives out of our homes (alcohol is one of those things).
She says "Well, I could just drink outside on the porch-- it's the same as smoking on the porch." Ummm, no it's not! People who have a cigarette don't come back in DRUNK. They keep their cigarettes in their purse or pocket, not in my food cabinets. Not to mention that is entirely hypocritical (I guess? Seems the best way to describe it) because YOU won't even let people smoke on YOUR back porch, you make them go off your property to smoke. Also, if I went and did my drug of choice at her house and said it was okay because I did it on the back porch, she would have me hauled off to rehab!
Then she told me that if it was going to be a problem, she just won't come. Great, you had a chance to see your daughter, son-in-law, and grandson (We live in AZ, she lives in FL. She has only seen him 3 times in his 27 month life) but apparently getting drunk on Christmas alone sounds like a better option.
Last time she brought her booze to a family function, my uncle's boyfriend's sister (a recovering alcoholic) relapsed on her booze. Not entirely her fault, of course, but still, she should know it's not a good idea to bring alcohol to the face of someone who is an alcoholic in early recovery! It matters more to her to have her booze than it does that her loved ones who are trying, stay sober.
