Melissa writes:
"I thought last night’s episode was very real and very telling. I tried to address a lot of your questions on Watch What Happens Live but wanted to make a few things clear.
As you have seen throughout the past five seasons, there have been A LOT of ups and downs between all of our families and our friendships. No one’s hands are 100% clean, including my own, but what I have learned is that actions speak louder than words when it comes to finding peace.
Our issue with Kathy and Richie is that they are the ones that pulled away from Joe and I, waaay before Teresa went away, and I’m still not even sure why. Now, they all of sudden are ready to come back around and are annoyed that we aren’t dropping everything to make time for them. Even though we hadn’t heard from them in a long time, we still supported them, checked in to make sure Victoria was okay and came to see their new beautiful home.
The second we walked into their house, we got thrown into a heated conversation about Teresa. I was pretty clear that I didn’t want to be put in the middle, and I’m glad Joe called Richie out on his unnecessary dig. Teresa, Joe and I agreed that we would put the past in the past, that there would be no more secrets, and that we would shut down any negative conversations about each other when that person was not there to defend themselves. And that is exactly what we did!
I am proud of how Joe handled himself throughout this entire episode. He loves his family and does want peace, but he’s right… we all need to be genuine to move forward, and if you’re not ready to do that, then be honest and tell them. When people said we weren’t supporting Kathy and Rosie, I think that’s unfair. If it wasn’t for Joe, Teresa would have never even sat down with her cousins.
I can’t speak for Teresa, but I know from my own experience with her that she goes through a process and she’s gotta get over one thing before she can approach the next. She said she doesn’t feel that Kathy and Rosie wanting to reconcile is genuine, and I can see both sides. I do believe they want to be back in the family and want to be with us, but I get that Teresa feels it’s not real since they didn’t reach out while she was away. I was not on the visitor list or approved email list, but I still wrote to Teresa to tell her how I felt and send pictures of her girls. I made the effort to let her know that I wanted her to be in my life and that I wanted us to be good.
What annoyed me most about that night at Kathy’s was the fact that Jacqueline was so much more invested than even Kathy or Rosie. From the minute I came through the door she was trying to fight with me. It’s a pattern that has been happening all season. For someone who keeps claiming that she is SO tired of our family’s “drama,” she seems to be constantly focused on it and is more of an antagonist rather than a peacemaker.
Next week we finally get to see the infamous Vermont trip. It was a whole other level of crazy. I’m actually looking forward to seeing it, because I still don’t really understand how things got so out of control.
Keep watching!"
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