Well, for Mr. Baggins, everything ended relatively well, but the hero of today’s story,the user u/Cactus_Bob_99, once faced a difficult dilemma. On one side was the comfort of home and favorite plants in his house, and on the other – his own relatives, in this particular case – his mom and, especially, his aunt.
The author of the post lives with his partner and one day he had to house his own mom and aunt
Image credits:Julia Filirovska (not the actual photo)
The ladies got kicked out of their last flat so they needed time to find a new accommodation
Image credits:u/Cactus_Bob_99
From the very first step, both women started imposing their own rules in the house, thus causing lots of troubles for the hosts
Image credits:Dominika Roseclay (not the actual photo)
The author’s aunt likes doing something she considers “gardening” so she started to touch his plants, which he forbade her to do
Image credits:Eco Warrior Princess (not the actual photo)
The last straw was when the woman tossed out the couple’s beautiful blooming magnolia tree, simply calling it ‘a weed’, so the host made her pay for a new one
So, the Original Poster (OP) says that he is forty years old and lives with his partner. However, recently, the original poster’s mom and aunt got kicked out from their last home, so while the women are looking for a new accommodation, the OP had to take them in. The author honestly admits that both his brother and uncle turned down the doubtful prospect of sharing a roof with these decent ladies for a while, so the OP was their last hope… well, or he simply did not find the courage to refuse.
And then came the turn of the plants. As the original poster says, his aunt loves gardening – however, she puts her own, very non-standard, meaning into this word. According to the lady, “gardening” is cutting plants literally to the root so that they can “regrow and be healthier.” At some point, the OP’s patience was exhausted, and he directly told his aunt not to touch their plants at all!
Image credits:Alfo Medeiros (not the actual photo)
Well, in any case, such behavior from guests, whether they are of any degree of kinship or friendship with the owners of the house, is completely unacceptable. Perhaps one of the problems is that the original poster and his partner did not set some boundaries for their guests beforehand. “The more power annoying guests have over you, the less in control you feel,” writes Mavis Butterfield, the author ofOne Hundred Dollars A Month blog, in her dedicated article. The same post also contains a recommendation to let guests take an active part in hosts’ life.
Mantas Kačerauskas
Rugilė Žemaitytė
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