A Letter to the Narcissist – No. 25

Dear Narc,

I am compelled to write this because I have been recently handed a very thick folder containing all manner of documents and records about you. A couple of residents from our retirement village decided to become super sleuths and did a background check on you.  Their little investigation was prompted by the hundreds of inconsistencies and contradictions in your grand delusional career claims.  I must say they did a marvellous job of ferreting out all the information in the folder.

They realized from the moment you moved into the village that your behaviour was very weird. Your habit of slyly watching others out of the corner of your hooded reptilian eyes twigged them to the fact that there was definitely something amiss They quickly became aware of your manipulativeness and the dreadful things you were saying about everyone behind their back. Your insincere emotional responses, switching from crocodile tears to joviality and back again within a blink of an eye was not normal behaviour.

The thick dossier that is doing the rounds of the village contains all manner of files they have dredged up on you.  Just to name a few of the contents, there   are certified copies of your marriage certificates, spouses’ death certificates, your divorce certificate, basic qualification records, old school enrolments, bankruptcy files, photos, a police report, wills, resumes  and so forth. Trust me that is just the tip of the iceberg.   There are recordings and transcripts of conversations with your estranged children, a sibling, your former husbands’ relatives, doctors, nurses, ministers as well as many ex work colleagues.

There are numerous letters from various regulators, institutions, universities and agencies confirming there are no records whatsoever of your alleged academic prowess and career achievements. Quite an exposé.

Your career was unimpressive and nothing like those silly, far fetched fantasies you prate on about. It is clear from the recordings that your relatives deem you to be untrustworthy , dishonest,  and toxic.  No doubt you will foolishly deny that the folder exists, claim it is fake or that you didn’t euthanise your husband, so I have enclosed a couple of samples from it as proof.

You have now become somewhat of a laughing stock and you only have yourself to blame. Everyone is saying   ‘You need professional help for your mental health issues, and that you have all the signs of senile dementia.‘ There is no sign of the gossip abating.    I will not name names and say who created the dossier, and there is no point asking anyone as they are bound to deny it.  Of course everyone is polite and pleasant to your face, but rest assured not one resident trusts you or believes anything you say.

I wouldn’t expect you to be smart enough to understand or recognize your unstable mental state.  I suggest that you always think before you speak.    Hopefully, you might have the cognitive ability and self-awareness to be thoughtful and reflective in what you speak about, as well as whom you speak about. I recommend that whenever you deal with others you just keep a very low profile and refrain from trying to be the centre of attention. Stop monopolising conversations as your opinion isn’t wanted or valid. Also, if something is humorous, try smiling politely instead of emitting that vulgar uncouth laugh interspersed with those loud long pig type of snorts.  Speak far less and listen more should be your new motto.

I thought it was only right to apprise you of this lowly opinion that everyone has formed about you.  You and only you are responsible for your poor behaviour. Only you are capable of changing the current base perception everyone has of you. Telling the truth from now on would also be a very good move in the right direction. You are probably incapable of speaking the truth but I urge you to at least try.

Yours sincerely,

A fellow resident