In “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” by Katherine Porter and “Why I Live in the PO” by Eudora Welty, the main characters deal with members of their family which they frankly don't like. Because they have both been abandoned by men, they are full of resentment and anger, which causes these women to leave their families on bad terms. Porter and Welty present, through the character's flashbacks and memories, that we should choose our battles wisely when it comes to our families, because one day they will be gone and some of us might miss our deceased loved ones , like Granny from “The Jilting of”. Granny Weatherall”, or be filled with hatred towards them, like Sister in “Why I Live in the PO”. Both Porter and Welty provide flashbacks and memories in their stories to help the reader see what Granny and Sister's lives were like before anything else. broke up with their families. Porter's "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" is full of flashbacks and memories of Granny's past relationships with the only people she loves, even though they are all dead. She remembered her youth when she was strong, independent and with John, the man who had stood her up at the altar and who had died when Grandma was young. She still loves him and wants to see him, but "John would look for a young woman with the Spanish spike comb in her hair and the painted fan" (Porter 81), she believed he would not recognize her. Grandma also lost one of her daughters, Hapsy, as well as her newborn, who also died. When Grandma brings these memories to the surface, a fog of darkness clouds reality and she gets lost and remembers that "there was a day, a day, but a swirl of black smoke rose and covered it, crept up and slipped into the light.” field where everything was planted so well...... middle of paper ......to be stubborn like Sister. Flashbacks allow the reader to come back with the characters and see what we missed, example; Grandma's happier days, when she had her man and was strong and young, or her sister's happier days when she also had her man and was treated respectably by some of her family members. Additionally, I believe the point proposed by both authors was: "Choose battles wisely and forgive or suffer continued loss forever." Works Cited Porter, Katherine. "Grandma Weatherall's Jilting." Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Writing. Ed. XJ Kennedy and Dana Gioia. Why I Live at the PO”: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Theater, and Writing..