The Phone Rings (Originally Published June 2008)

..it's 9am on a Saturday, and I'm in desperate need of sleep, but I miss my boy - and so I pull myself to the receiver.  It's him!  He's quiet, submissive and (in my Motherly opinion) in duress.  It's only a matter of minutes for our conversation to come to a halt by the atmosphere he must be in.  I ask him what's for breakfast and the reply has to be reiterated to me in German - why?  Because every facet of life there is controlled.  It's like a substance that was never approved by the FDA - The Atmosphere. 
Soon enough, it's too much to handle and Garrett says his "good byes" - at which time the phone is handed off to the most-offensive of all conversationalists.  "What's going ..s the conversation (if you can call it that, I prefer to reference such meetings of the mind as a kind of Pavlovian conquering mission.

I don't reply because I have nothing to reply with - and he really wouldn't want my answer anyway.  Needless to say, there is no conversation with the Pavlovian Prodigy himself - it's direct order in the form of conditionaling and I'm not falling for it. Eight years of this banter; you'd think he'd redirect his attention elsewhere, but no - I must be his favoritist contestant. Anyway, it's thirty minutes of him telling me that "due to what Garrett's been reporting is happening when Garrett's at his house" that it has occurred to him that the problem must  be because it's been such a long time since I've seen him and Garrett interact and that I must not remember the way he used to act around Garrett as a baby.

Also, that there must be a tumultuous situation of abuse that has occurred to skew my reality and that I should seek therapy for the many plaguing issues that I obviously have so as to not confuse our son any longer - "It's that you're just like your father, don't you see that?  You're incapable of accepting the reality of it all and you're making this stuff up..."
The then suggestion was to "allow" me to come to his house to "observe" he and Garrett's interaction so that I might "reaffirm my thought pattern " and re-examine my perspectives. 
If I would be so kind as to do these things, than he would further assist me in correcting my ways and I would no longer be confused and making up the scenarios that have, for so long been plaguing the lives of me and my son.  It was quite obvious to him that it was only  he  that could take care of my woes and distinguish my thoughts to clear him of any injustice - but would have to be at the mercy of a PSYCHOPATH!

That's intelligent - let's just throw caution to the wind, shall we?  Assume for a moment that years of physical, verbal, emotional and psychological abuse didn't happen and that I must have it all wrong.  Assume that he wouldn't off me in a heartbeat if he had a chance and that he wouldn't take it out on Garrett (afterall, he's only done it too many times in the past to keep track of) - and assume that he's telling the truth and that in my allotted hour of "observational" time at his house (where I was told that I'd have to show up alone and the "observe only" was specified) -  that I could then rest in peace (If I'm not assuming that I'm already dead at this point) knowing that he's just as fucked up as I'd ASSUMED from the start. 
What would that amount to in the book of accomplishments?  (Assuming again, that I'm not already a goner)....Answers anyone?

To quote Ayn Rand: "Evil is impotent and has no power but that which we let it extort from us".
So, my answer (given the scenario of Garrett being held captive in the atrocitous household for the weekend) was "No".  And even then - No doesn't mean "No" to an abuser - it means that you're mentally weak.  Too mentally incapacitated to speak further and say what you actually mean - which to an abusive psychopath means, "Yes".

I expect that he's awaiting my phone call or arrival.

This truly is an extortion of the soul.