The Condition

by Jennifer Haigh

The story of the McKotch family, from the time of the daughter Gwen's diagnosis with Turner's Syndrome to 20 years after. Each family member has secrets that they have kept, and as they come to realize the price of keeping those secrets, they see each other in a different light.

I thought this story would take a decidedly different track - in that I expected it to be the story of Gwen and her diagnosis and the affect it has on the whole family. What I found, however, was a story of a family, like any other family, where everyone has their own issues and the affect that that has on the family. By seeing each family member separately, it allowed me to see how they were together and understand each one.

But it made me think - how do the labels you adopt in childhood come to shape your entire life? If you are known in the family as the level-headed one, is that how you act, even if it isn't how you feel anymore? And what happens with someone like Gwen, who is the one who will never grow up, when she is ready to grow up? Even the mother Paulette continues in her role as the keeper of the family traditions, long after her parents are gone and her brother and sister have moved on. By continuing these roles into adulthood, are you doing what is expected of you, at the cost of letting your family see who you really are? The McKotches realize this eventually, but I suspect that many families never do.