Pamela:
What?! You set up an appointment with those therapists without consulting me?

Joseph:
Yes I did. I didn't think you'd be angry. I thought you'd be happy that I was taking some action to solve this problem.

Pamela:
Happy? You make a major decision like that without talking to me first and you expect me to be happy? I know you're used to acting on your own, but Joseph, you're married now. And besides, are we going to run to a therapist every time something goes wrong? Why don't we try to just solve our problems? And who are these people? I don't relish telling our problems to strangers.

Joseph:
I don't understand your priorities. Our house is on fire and you're worried about what the fire department will think?

Pamela:
Well, who set the fire? Joe Jr. brings his drugs and his nasty behavior home with him, gets Judith all upset.

Joseph:
Gets Judith upset? Pamela, this may come as a surprise to you, but living with Judith is no piece of cake. I mean, I've tried to be patient.

Pamela:
YOU'VE tried? What do you think it's been like for me, suddenly finding myself with three more children who...one of them does drugs, another is a budding Lolita, okay, Petie is a good kid.

Joseph:
Lolita?! Now it's Chris you don't like?!

Pamela (apologetic):
Okay, I'm sorry for saying that. But Joseph, your kids have got problems and you're not dealing with them! Do you want me to keep these things a secret from you? The drugs? The bad crowd Chris hangs out with? You don't see half of what goes on because you're almost never home and even when you are home you're afraid to tell them what to do!

Joseph:
Pamela, I can't be home any more than I am now ...

Pamela:
We're going around in circles! No one is blaming you for not being home, but the fact is you are not as involved in your children's lives as you should be.

Joseph:
...and as for telling them what to do, maybe my style of raising children is different from yours. I don't think they should be preached to. I think they have to learn from personal example, from talking things out, not just taking orders and lectures from me.

Pamela:
Okay Joseph, sounds great. A wonderful way to raise children. There's only one problem. IT'S NOT WORKING! I never had to preach to my kids either and so far...

Joseph:
Every time the kids fight you defend your daughter and come down hard on Joe Jr. ... It can't be only his fault all the time. All seven of us are going through a difficult transition. How are we going to work this out if we can't all speak honestly about how we feel?

Pamela (quietly):
Okay, let's speak honestly. Your son Joe Jr. is probably bringing drugs into this home. I've got a teenage daughter and a young impressionable son who see that. So think about them, not just about his feelings. And think about your own younger children! Do you want them under Joe Jr.'s negative influence?

Joseph:
Negative! He's a good kid, he's just been through a lot. What do you want me to do, throw him out of the house?

Pamela:
I didn't say that! But we have to work things out!

Joseph:
So that's why I made the appointment with the therapists - so we can finally work it out.

Pamela (starts to cry):
Joseph, I feel like everything's been taken out of my hands. I'm in a new country, with a new job, with a new family, and now, with a new set of problems, and I don't even feel like I have control over my own life. You were so different in Milan. We discussed these problems then, we knew it wouldn't be easy. You said then that you'd be willing to do anything it takes to make this work!

Joseph:
Pamela, that's exactly what I'm trying to do - find a way to make this work! I wasn't trying to take anything out of your hands.

Pamela:
Well, instead of making decisions without consulting me, why don't you begin making it work by talking to Joe? Your son needs help in a big way.

Joseph (tightly):
Okay. I'll postpone the appointment and do it your way first. I'll talk to Joe. But you have to promise to do something about Judith, too. She has got to change her attitude if this is going to work.

Pamela (long pause):
I'll talk to her.

Next Episode: Dr. Tobin's Comments

Previous Episode: Scene 2: Pamela Confronts Judith

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