I’m a novice storyteller who is inspired by prompts. This Literary Quote “…you fix what you can fix and you let the rest go” has brought up to mind this anecdote which I’m going to relate. Maybe one day in the future, I might learn how to show the events and not depend on telling to build a picture.
BB is my former colleague. He is a man’s man; I didn’t find a fault in him. He’s married, but he still finds his way to take care of everyone around him. His wife, RR, is also one of the best gals in women.
BB’s story sometimes can still make me tear up.
His dad used to operate a coffee shop, housed within a big food center. His old man earned enough to go on overseas vacations.
BB loved and respected his Dad and Mom. He spoke of them with reverence. He shared his stories to benefit others from his experiences. One day, he shared his story with me.
“My parents are divorced. My dad lived in country C. He has a second family there.”
My heart sank after I heard that.
“After he passed away, the other family told me he willed a share of his house in country C, to me. It was a small share, among the other shares.
If he desired revenge, he could have told the thieves who stole his Dad that he wants to stay in Dad’s house.
“I can’t do anything with that share, so I hired my lawyer to return that share to the rest of that family. I wanted to correct what my Dad did, by taking away a share of his house, to gift to me.”
This reminded me of the writer Cormac McCathy, who wrote in “No Country For Old Men”, that “you fix what you can fix and you let the rest go.”
BB had a big heart to give away his legacy, for free. He could have asked the other heirs to pay money to buy out his share, but he didn’t. He donated his inheritance to his stepmom and step siblings. He fixed the awkward position his Dad gave him.
BB didn’t bring to the table his Mom’s and his sufferings after his Dad left their family. He couldn’t fix the gap caused by his Dad’s abandonment. He couldn’t fix his parents’ marriage. He did what he could, by stepping up to the plate, to take care of his Mom.
Then, he again stepped up, to do what he thought was right, by that arrangement, so that his Dad’s younger family could enjoy peace of mind about their family home. He did what a Big (Step)Brother would do, fixing what he could fix.
The two families did not start relations.
The End.
Question and Answer:
- Do you agree with what BB did for his Dad’s second family?
- If no, what would YOU have done instead?
- Do you think the two families should have started relations to know one another?
Related
“…you fix what you can fix and you let the rest go.”― Cormac McCarthy, No Country for Old Men. Thanks to blogger Violet at https://violetslentz.home.blog/2026/03/26/liminal/ , for this Literary Quote, which inspired this story.
An older post about a man who disappeared is at https://artmater.com/case-study-of-star-fading/
Postscript
I shall try to draft and type another two anecdotes with the similar theme.
I think in the end, we all do what we can bare. His Dad couldn’t bear to leave him out of the only inheritance he had to leave- BB couldn’t bear to take away from his stepfamily what had always been theirs and evidently living as two separate units was what those involved felt most comfortable with.
I had an estranged relationship with my mother and stepsisters. When my mother died- they did not even inform me, I found out much later via a Google search. However, when I finally came across her obituary, I was heartened that it included this line in the cast of those she left behind ‘and her daughter, Jodi’ I realize that was all they could bear- and I appreciate that kindness under those terms.
Thank you so much for sharing this vignette. I think it added a much-needed texture to this quote.
Dear Jodi,
I can understand the pain. I believe the generation gap is present in all birthed generations, and maybe even those in-between generations like younger half-siblings and cousins born in vastly different eras of years.
When there is so much pressure, and uncertainty in reciprocation, many people choose not to open any channel of communication. The elders usually refuse to reach out to reconcile, for their reasons. The younger generation may have felt too stressed to interfere.
Thank you for sharing a valuable anecdote that explains the human condition.