Dallas, Texas

"…and you don't believe she simply wants to be closer to her grandson?" looking at his patient expectantly, Doctor Williams prompted her; he knew she didn't believe that John Ross was her mother's primary motivation, and frankly, neither did he, however, he needed her to verbalise her own thoughts before they moved any further. "No, I don't", looking him in the eye as she spoke, Sue Ellen thought for a moment before continuing, "don't get me wrong, I believe she loves John Ross, she's not a complete monster, however, I don't believe John Ross has anything to do with her wanting to move closer to Dallas. I don't believe that she is dissatisfied with having to fly an hour each way, first class or by private jet I must add, to see her grandson; she knows that all she has to do is call and most likely, the answer to her hints about visiting will be yes. She knows how to guilt me into inviting her to places and giving her things, she's a master manipulator. That's why I don't believe her. There is nothing stopping her from making more frequent visits to Southfork, not really; but in the two months since John Ross' birth, she's seen him for probably a total of six or seven days; that's fine with me, she doesn't have to be heavily involved, but it also doesn't ring true to the wishes of a needy grandmother. John Ross is a convenient excuse for her to move closer to JR and me, closer to the Ewing money and connections. Kristin will be starting junior high in the fall and if I know my mother, that means she'll be entering more pageants, taking more extracurricular classes and going to more social mixers; she's starting her real, serious training to find a wealthy husband and with my marriage to JR, Dallas offers a better range of options for my sister's future. Now, it's not all selfless either, it's not all about Kristin's future; I'm sure my mother realises that she's met and mixed with every wealthy man in Austin between the ages of forty five and eighty and apart from one or two who may have temporarily fallen for her act, she's now exhausted her options. Dallas offers everything she wants, but she can't just up and move here without reason and expect everyone to accommodate her, so she's planned it carefully and is now putting that plan into action; John Ross is her gateway to a better life".

Sighing as she verbalised her thoughts, she wondered how true her beliefs were; her mother was selfish, but she wasn't a monster, she wasn't entirely self-motivated, was she? Perhaps she was; to Patricia, Sue Ellen's marriage to JR and the idea of Kristin's future marriage pleased her mostly because she indirectly bettered her own life, not because she truly cared about their happiness; so perhaps instead of caring at all, she really was entirely motived by money. Shaking off that thought, Sue Ellen reassured herself that that wasn't the case. Her mother had to have some heart, otherwise, instead of being Mrs JR Ewing right now, she'd have probably been Mrs William 'Billy' Frampton III, or worse, the silent, controlled and completely miserable wife of one of the many, much older and less kind men her mother had set her up with. JR was eight years older than her and although she truly did love him and enjoy being with him, there were still times and had been many times in the past when she was still a college student that she'd felt like a child with her father rather than a happy young lady with her boyfriend/husband. Some of the men her mother had set her up with had had nothing going for them except for having large bank balances, so even though they were wealthy, she had no doubt as to why they were still looking for wives; any sane woman wouldn't go near them. To be JR's wife and have been allowed to get to almost twenty-three years of age prior to marrying him, confirmed to her that although somewhat high-handed, her mother wasn't completely heartless; she could have pushed her into a lucrative, but wholly loveless marriage she didn't want if she had tried hard enough, luckily for Sue Ellen though, she hadn't.

"Mhm, and what does your mother have to say about all of this? I don't mean what did she say in front of the Ewings, I'm asking what she said when you discussed it between yourselves privately", raising his eyebrow at her as he spoke, he knew his question would fluster her enough to make her think. In his previous experience with Mrs Sue Ellen Ewing and from everything she had said in their appointment that morning, there was no doubt in his mind that she hadn't actually confronted her mother about the issue directly, but he wanted her to consider that for herself before asking him for his thoughts on the subject. "Well…" knowing that a few agreeable words at family dinner and then a brief, non-invasive conversation on the drive from Southfork to the airport didn't really count as a discussion, she paused, at a loss for words. "That's what I thought", pausing and taking a moment to make eye contact with her, he spoke again, slowly and carefully, hoping that she understood he was there to help her, not judge her, "communication Sue Ellen, communication. You must not allow your mother to control your thoughts like this. You feel a certain way and assume that her motivation is selfish, and it's entirely possible that it is that way, but you will never know for sure and will never have your thoughts and feelings on the subject considered if you don't say anything. I think you know by now that your mother is a doer, she doesn't look for a range of opinions before making a decision, she simply does what she wants and if somebody is upset with that, then so be it, it doesn't bother her. You're not the same and although you're probably more polite about the way you approach situations, it's often to your detriment, not your benefit. In this case, I don't want you to just suffer silently because you want to avoid confrontation and I don't want you to simply allow your husband to speak for you, I want you to sit down and talk to your mother, rationally and politely, but still firmly. You don't have to be rude and you don't have to accuse her of having other motivations, but you need to speak to her, you need to open up a dialogue so that she is aware that you have feelings, because if you allow her to just do what she wants, then I guarantee that she won't consider your feelings. Then do you know what's going to happen? We'll be sitting here again in a month or whenever when she does move to Dallas and we'll be having this same conversation again. You need to be proactive and voice your concerns now, before anything happens, not later on, when it's already happened. Do you understand?" he knew that he had to be gentle and sensitive toward her feelings sometimes, but now was not one of those times, this was a situation that required her to use her initiative and directly address her concerns, because it wasn't just going to disappear if she pretended that it didn't exist.

Feeling sick to her stomach at the idea of confronting her mother, because she knew that any way she approached the situation would probably turn into an argument, Sue Ellen nodded warily, "yes, I understand". Seeing that she was deeply afraid, Doctor Williams softened toward her, "a polite, direct discussion about her future in Dallas, that's all. No accusations of gold-digging or bringing up past, unrelated actions; I simply want you to talk to her and manage expectations of what will happen to your lives now that she intends on being closer. You have the right as her daughter, the mother of her grandson and as a concerned participant in her and your own life, to ask questions and set a few boundaries. If possible, I'd like you to do it without JR present, however, if you really need him for moral support, then you may include him; I do not want JR to speak for you though, you need to assert yourself, you need to make your mother understand that you aren't a pushover and she shouldn't act as if you are. I will also offer my services for a group session if you do not think that your own efforts are enough. You're my patient and your happiness is my primary concern, however, your happiness is connected to all of the other people in your life, so if you need to make decisions in a safe, supportive space like this, then you're welcome to do so. First things first though, I would like you to at least try to speak to your mother alone, it's good practice for your life after our sessions come to a close and it's a good way for your mother to learn that you are a serious adult and she cannot treat you as if you're a petulant child". Offering her a warm, encouraging smile to go with his words, he gave her a specific task and reassured her that she was capable of at least attempting that task. "Thank you", nodding as she considered everything, Sue Ellen took a deep breath and then agreed, thanking him before standing, shaking his hand and then leaving he room. Leaving the building after arranging her next appointment, the sick feeling in her stomach worsened; she had a bad feeling about everything, Doctor Williams had never met her mother, he didn't know how bad she could affect her and she wasn't sure that she was ready to throw herself into a situation like that. Whether she was or wasn't was irrelevant though, because as Doctor Williams had said, her mother had a mind of her own and unless Sue Ellen said something to discourage her, she would not hesitate to do exactly as she pleased, no matter who it hurt.

To be continued…