Gladys, the Mad, Mad Wife

Gladys should have been the “gladdest” wife in the world. Married to Jared, one of the most successful medium-sized business owners, she had all she needed.

Running her own tailoring business, which had been financed by Jared, she could not ask for more.

She had the car she had asked for, a Mercedes ML270.

Married way back in 1998, they had enjoyed a rich marriage. Calvin, now eleven, and Evans, now six, are going to the top cost school in the city of Nairobi, in Kenya.

Come year 2003, something happened that no one can explain to date. Gladys started reporting late home from work each and every evening. When asked by her loving Sweetheart, she would react badly, shouting and swearing. She no longer cooked for the family, no longer packed lunch for the children, no longer arranged Jared’s office attire for the next day.

Worse still, she no longer went to church on Sundays, saying she was busy. Asked what she was busy doing, she did not want to explain. Instead she would shout and swear so loudly that Jared would just leave her alone.

This affected the children’s performance, and they slid from the “A” rating they had maintained ever since they started school, to a grade of “B”, of which they were not familiar.

One day, Jared decided to take the family out for a picnic. This had been a normal family culture that they had maintained over the years. Every second and fourth Saturdays of the month were family picnic days. Owing to Gladys’s new character, Jared worked with Nancy, the house-help, in the preparation for the picnic.

During the picnics, each family member would share how the two weeks had been for them, share jokes, Bible Quizzes and Puzzles, races, as well as a football game. Gladys, the mother of the children, at first participated quite well. However, after around thirty minutes, she suddenly, out of the blues and without warning, became hysterical. She shouted at Jared, claiming that he was having an affair with Nancy the house-help, and she issued a serious threat. She said that she would kill Jared if he continued.

The picnic had to be cut short following that incident.

In November 2003, the children had a prize-giving day, and Jared and Gladys were in attendance, together with their children. For the first time, Calvin and Evans were not among the top three. Gladys became hysterical, shouting and wailing to Jared’s embarrassment.

Jared decided to visit a counselor. After around twenty minutes, the conversation went this way:

Counselor: What do you think is the right decision to make in this case?

Jared: I want a divorce.

Counselor: On what grounds would you want a divorce?

Jared: Cruelty and recklessness, bordering on insanity. This is affecting each and every family member. The children’s performance has gone down by over 35%, my performance at work has gone down as well, and she has, in a space of five months, made seven death threats. We are not safe with this woman.

Counselor: You have indeed said that she’s not denying you your conjugal rights, neither are you reporting adultery, right?

Jared: Right. However, this is a case whereby our lives are at stake.

Counselor: I strongly advice you not to divorce this woman. Divorce is only allowed on the grounds of adultery, which, in this case, is non-existent.

Jared: Do you care about our safety as a family? Would you be happy with yourself if you learned that I was murdered by this woman?

In short, the counselor dismissed Jared’s idea of a divorce.

In mid-December 2003, Gladys whipped Calvin, and Jared was called by a neighbour one Thursday afternoon to rush Calvin to hospital. Calvin had head injuries. He was admitted for three days.

Upon Calvin’s return, Jared had had it, and he gave Gladys her marching orders.