They say power reveals character. When my husband got promoted to assistant warehouse manager, it didn’t just go to his head—it came home with him. Suddenly, he acted like royalty. He demanded silence, hot lunches, back rubs at 2 a.m.—even told our four-year-old to walk quieter.
Meanwhile, I was working 12-hour shifts at a behavioral health facility, juggling crises. But to him, only his job seemed to matter.
The last straw? He woke me up at night to demand ice cream with chocolate drizzle and cashews. When I refused, he called me ungrateful. That’s when I realized it was time for a reality check.
So, I planned a dinner. Family, friends, his favorite meal. And then I toasted him—not just for his promotion, but for teaching me how not to let someone diminish my worth. I shared the truth of how he’d been treating us. The room went silent. So did he. Then he left.
Later that night, he came back—quiet, humbled. Said his father had called him out. Said he finally heard it.
The next morning, he tried cooking breakfast. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start.
“I’ll learn the rest,” he said. “I promise.”