Anisette Studio

What does Anna do now?

“Did Anna see Randy when she picked up the kids” She knew that question would pop up. Her father asked. “Anna did you see Randy when you picjed up the kids?” The words would not come out. The kids anwered their grandfather. “NO! He was gone! Mom thinks he may have walked to the pond or was off with someone. Call Marc or Peter he was talking about helping them with winter wood!” Yes! That would be possible she thought. But he was not helping them! It would be a matter of time.

“You ok Anna?” Her mother asked. Looking guiltily at the kids she said, “It’s just something with an event I am involved in.” The kids looked at her. She could read their minds would this be her having to work? Why were they coming is she had to work. It was ok if Dad had to work, but not her she thought. But he would not be working ever again!

“OK, if he calls I will let you know! Her father was saying. He came back to the table. “That was your brother looking for Randy. Let him know if Randy calls.” She wanted to say, “That would be a first! He doesnt call me, he has the kids call and say they can’t come that he is doing something special!’ But she didn’t, it would not make a difference, and besides the kids would see her and it would confirm that she was just whatever he father said she was. The often felt distant. And like they were expected to take sides. Not a fair thing for a kid to feel, so she had taken the higher road so that they would feel good about their reality. She had cried in the beginning and this made it feel like they wanted to avoid being with her.

They did not understand what happened with the divorce and why. She had been the farm wife and not worked out, there had been no job at the time. She had finally got the car, Randy had decided he wouldsupport her working! He had decided he needed more money in their budget, all the kids were in school she could work hours that would have her home. This was both concerning and exciting. Then when she went to the job fair___ she had a big carrot dangled before her nose! They told her about she could go for a degree! College was a choice! Art School became a choice! If she talked to their counselor____. She had and the next thing she knew Randy was supporting her efforts with the help of the counselor to go to university! She had aced all the testing but mathmatics and they would help her with that! The counselor go the kids on board too!

The one thing she did not know was an art degree was not going to give her immediate financial support. An art degree does not teach you how to use art as a business. This and the fact that when graduation came she could not return to Randy and life as it was. The last three years had given her independence and she had learned she could control the world she was navagating. She had friends, and she had pulled it all off. She felt like the world was hers, all but where Randy came into the picture. She thought the kids and I will be fine. I can figure this out. I need to break from Randy. But things had not turned out as she had thought they would. The last years had became wonky. Randy had stopped being supportive because she had to live a dorm reality because the drive home was too much and study too! The counselor had Randy being supportive, now he seemed to do so but he and Randy seem to have a different relationship. The kind a counselor does not have with his clients, they are not supposed to be friends and meet for coffee or gift gifts to the children, have them come and play. Talk about fishing. She would say things about what was happening or not happening and would be persauded to do things that seem to appease Randy and undermind her.

The things she was saying were the truth! She had thought that Randy needs to understand why it is wrong to do the things he has done! She wondered about if he could change what would he be like. Magical thinking was not a term she knew then. Then she got locked into the game. She had been hanging clothes up in the basement and their oldes girl had decided to be rude regarding what she wanted. Anna was swaying her daughter into seeing things better when Randy came barging down the stairs and began hitting there daugher around her face. She had stepped in-between and stopped the behaving allow their daughter to leave. She was telling Randy he had no right to treat their daughter like that when she heard the door close. There daughter was going to her friends, this she had encouraged. Randy went storming off. She had waited to till the next day and then she called the counselor. What he had said to her shocked her! “If you try to prove Randy is abusive! I will back him to the hilt!” In that moment her life fell apart. She was locked into an abusive relationship! Without support! When she had tried to leave there was no support. She would have to find support on her own while the kids were in school. She had, and it had failed her and her kids! OH! They tell you what you need to do. And they offered a life locked into a way of living where she would find it hard to be all she wanted to be. And if she were to get custody of her kids she would need to fight both Bill and his counselor.

The counselor___ he had been found on the bulleton board at Randy’s work. He was no longer the farm but now worked for a well known shoe shop. He was home more and he was still controlling, abusive towards her and less supportive over time. The last three years of schooling were a nightmare. The only reason she continued was the hope of meeting her and the kids needs after divorcing Randy. It did not happen like she thought it would. While going to school she began to seek help after finding a file Randy had made. Apparently a suggestion of the counselor friends. Had Randy left this where she would find it? She thought that likely. It was a list of people who would support him if they divorced. Her father, brother, a neighbor who was suppost to be her friend had told him she had not seen her for years. Of course not she was in school, and that so called friend was an alcholic who had come in went into her refrigerator and found her vodka for vanilla and just took it out and made a drink with coolaid. She had decided not to be a friend at that point. But there she was in Randy’s file. There was a letter from his half sister. Randy and the counselor were making plans. WHY? Because she had also stopped going to the counseling sessions with “him”. Randy refused to change to someone else.

“Anna? Her mother and the kids were looking at her. “I was just working out what the kids and I could do for fun in my head. She turned to the kids. “Want to go camping? No! How about a day at the beach! Going on trails? We could get scooters! Her mother still looked at her. “I will call Shelly and make sure she is on the right track and then I wont be thinking about the event at all!” She sounded like she ment it.

The door opened and in came Randy! She was shocked! “Well! Man you look pretty beat up!” His arm was in a sling, and there were stitches on the side of his head. What happened to you?” She did not hear what he was saying, it all felt sounded muffled. The kids had gathered all around Randy examining his arm in the sling, and his face that was all black and blue. Her mother was getting a chair and her father was exclaiming things and asking questions. Randy was the center of attention once more. And he was not dead! How could that be?

His tale was that he woke up in the dark and managed to get up the stairs, go to the bathroom and then he drove himself to the ER. The kids were gone! He figured they had got their things and climbed into the car. The last thing he remembered was tripping over Sam taking stuff down stairs.

The End? Or is it? Only a bad dream? Perhaps.

Pejj Nunes 3/24/2026