My mother recently came back from working abroad, and my husband and I finally decided to try speaking with her again. We believed that this time, if she saw the way we were living, she might soften and rethink her attitude toward us. But it turned out differently — she would not even open the door.
Our relationship really broke down about five years ago. Before that, my mother had always been kind, gentle, and willing to meet me halfway. Then it felt as though she became a stranger — cold, firm, and unable to forgive me for one choice I made.
She has spent many years working overseas, and during that time she managed to save a good amount of money. She once paid for my education in full and also helped with my wedding. I have always been sincerely grateful to her for that.
The problems started because of the apartment my mother had once given me. She had transferred it into my name before I got married. After the wedding, my husband and I lived there peacefully for some time.
But after our children were born, my mother-in-law became seriously ill. She lives in the countryside, and the only thing they really had was a cow — there was no money at all for treatment. So we made the decision to sell the apartment and use all the money for her medical care.
By then, my mother already had her own two-bedroom apartment in the city. I thought we could stay there for a while, since she was still abroad anyway. But when I asked her for the keys, she unexpectedly refused. She said that what I had done hurt and offended her deeply. In her words, she had not spent years working far from home just so I could get rid of everything so easily — especially without even discussing it with her first.
We had no choice but to move to the village and live with my mother-in-law in a small house without basic comforts. And the most painful part was that my mother seemed to forget about us completely. In those five years, she never once called, never asked about her granddaughters, and never helped even in the smallest way — not for holidays, not just because.
We did not fall apart, though. We managed however we could. Now we run a household farm: four bulls, fifteen pigs, and quails as well. We take meat and eggs to the market and work nonstop. But even with all that hard work, over these years we still have not come close to saving enough for even a down payment on a home.
When our relatives told us that my mother had come back for a vacation, we went to see her as a whole family. I truly wanted to talk to her one more time. I hoped that after all this time she might have softened a little — after all, I am her only daughter. But my mother would not even let us step inside and would not so much as look at us.
“When you have achieved something on your own, then come back — maybe then I will open the door. I already helped you once, and where did that get you? What guarantee is there that it would not happen again? All the best.”
The heaviness and hurt I feel toward my mother are impossible to put into words. I know how to count, and I understand very well that she has serious savings — enough to buy an apartment not only for me, but for my children too. Yet it feels as if she simply does not want to see that we truly need help.
Did I really throw everything away? The money went toward something important — toward saving a person’s health. So why is she acting this way? I honestly cannot understand it.
Tell me honestly: if you knew your daughter was in such a difficult situation, would you really refuse to let her stay in an empty apartment?