Through the years, jokes have perpetuated the stereotype that mothers-in-law can be overbearing and cause marriage friction, but two Windham women are disproving that notion and have written a new book for navigating this complex family relationship.
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| Wendy Satin Rapaport, left, and her daughter-in-law Teri Rapaport, both of Windham, have co-authored a new book called 'Advice From My Mother-In-Law That I Actually WANT,' which contains real-life stories, psychological insight, and laugh-out-loud humor. The book is available on Amazon, at Sherman's Maine Coast Book Shop in Windham and at On the Docks Gift Shop in Windham, COURTESY PHOTO |
Dr. Wendy Satin Rapaport is a clinical psychologist, and Teri Rapaport works in the dental field in Portland.
They collaborated on the book to show that even with the challenges facing mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationships and with associated inherent obstacles that connection, laughter, forgiveness, and empathy is possible in such relationships.
“We have had a happy relationship for 30 years,” said Wendy Satin Rapaport. “I have always enjoyed Teri and every time we had a conversation where she changed my mind, and I changed hers. We kept saying, oh we should write this up to inspire others.”
Teri Rapaport says her objective in writing the book was to show that having a great relationship with an in-law is possible.
“Not outlaw in-laws,” she said. “We honor each other’s differences.”
They said that they have worked on their relationship so that their family can benefit and grow with love and support.
“We joke that it is Pest Control. We are persistent and empathy, self-control, and tolerance are our themes that we want to share,” said Wendy Satin Rapaport. “It came to us naturally, but we do appreciate how hard it can be.”
Having taught at the University of Maine graduate school and performed social work for 30 years, Wendy Satin Rapaport and her husband have rented a home for the last five years at Little Sebago Lake in Windham. Teri and her husband Bruce have lived in Windham for 15 years on the opposite side of Little Sebago Lake and visit Wendy and her husband by boat.
It took them a complete year – summer to summer – to write the book while relaxing on the water of Little Sebago Lake on a pontoon boat, not to mention early mornings and late nights that they worked on copy corrections and wondered how the book would be perceived by readers.
“We know it’s not perfect, but it’s perfect enough for us,” they said. “Once we mastered the computer challenges of writing, we actually enjoyed ourselves and it was wonderful to label what we did naturally and then learn new methods for the things that we saw were bigger differences than we had realized. We became closer, laughed our way through the whole process because that is one of the key skills that we both naturally have and that we do believe can be learned by everybody.”
“Advice From My Mother-In-Law That I Actually WANT” is now available at Sherman’s Maine Coast Book Shop in Windham and at Sherman’s location across the state. On the Docks Gift Shop in Windham is also selling copies of the book with special bracelets featuring locked pinky fingers as a bracelet charm. The book’s cover shows Teri and Wendy Satin Rapaport connecting with pinky fingers while out boating on Little Sebago Lake. It’s also available on Amazon.
“The connecting pinkies shows us as connecting together as mother- and daughter-in-law, but also as friends and women,” Wendy Satin Rapaport said. <
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