I've made Thanksgiving dinner for 30 years for my family, but since my older sister passed away in 2018, I've had no help. At least she made mashed potatoes. This year I decided I'm not having anything and now my younger brother and sister are mad at me. I gave them more than enough time to make other plans. Going out to dinner is problematic for my family because my Sister-in-Law has Celiac disease (gluten free) and so are the kids.

I just don't feel up to it this year and I'm really disappointed in their reactions. The first thing that bothers me is that they expect it, as if I'm there to serve them to keep the family together, of course. I always made the dinners out of the goodness of my heart, but I don't think my family really cares about anything but the inconvenience of not having it at my house. They don't respect me or my wishes.

They think because I'm retired I have an abundance of time. In reality, you really slow down in life and don't have the energy to do what you used to. There's so many disappointments in life the older you get.