My husband and I are busy but try to be involved in family activities. When my family started distancing themselves, I knew something was wrong. I was not ready for the reason behind the silence.

My name is Emily, married to Alex for over a decade. Alex, from China, works in tech, while I’m an accountant. Despite our busy lives, we always attended important family gatherings.

Recently, my family started distancing themselves. Even my cousins, with whom I was close, rarely spoke to me. “Do you think they’re upset with us for missing Thanksgiving last year?” I asked Alex. “Maybe, but it doesn’t make sense,” he replied.

Months passed with uncomfortable silence. One day, I bumped into Aunt Linda at the grocery store. She mentioned a family get-together we didn’t know about and asked, “Is what I heard about you true?” She explained my parents had spread a rumor that Alex and I were scammers.

Stunned, I confronted my parents on FaceTime. “Why are you lying about us being scammers?” I asked. My dad replied, “Because you told us so.” I denied it, but they insisted. Their accusations deeply hurt us, and they stereotyped my husband, which was offensive.

Despite Aunt Linda urging forgiveness, I decided to keep my distance. I need time to reflect on their actions before approaching them again. Is it wrong to protect myself and my husband from further pain and misunderstanding?