CANADA—Wednesday, March 18th is Forgive Mom and Dad Day. In recognition of burying the hatchet, Counsel Canada has opened its doors across the country to welcome family members ready to forgive and forget.
“As a nationwide counselling service, we felt this was the perfect opportunity to embrace the concept of forgiveness while offering a bit of guidance,” said Vancouver site director, Sarah Lyman. “We’ll also have metal detectors at the doors to ensure things don’t get out of hand.”
Each center will be equipped with armed guards, a time-out room and individual doses of Zoloft.
“We have every confidence that the parents and children who come together to resolve long-standing feuds will conduct themselves like responsible adults,” said Lyman. “But, it pays to be prepared. It only takes one revenge crime to spoil the day for everyone.”
Overall, the idea has received some positive feedback online. Daddyslilgirl tweeted that she’d be willing to participate if her estranged father made an appearance without his belt. Secondson weighed in with the comment “This is a great idea! I hope my mom will show up and not talk about my brother.”
Lyman admits that family issues can run deep and not all scars can be healed in a day. “Think of this as a starting point; a way to reconnect after maybe not talking for a few years, possibly because of a jail sentence or restraining order.”
Counsel Canada is booking advance appointments through their website. “We’re hoping to get an idea of the volume and nature of the cases we may see,” said scheduler Arnold Lee. “We don’t want to overload one counsellor with molestation victims and abandonment issues. It’s better to have a mix of the heavy stuff and something like a dispute over who got to name the puppy.”
“The bottom line? Let bygones be bygones,” said Lyman. “Whether the grievance is real or perceived, I think we all have something to forgive. Like that time Mom cut my hair short and all the kids called me Mr. Lyman for a year. I forgive you, Mom.”
Photo credit: Fat Tony, flickr.