I love my parents and I'm sure most of you all do as well. Our parents raised us up, provided for us, took care of us, and somehow managed to keep us alive for the first decade and a half of our lives. So yeah, I really appreciate everything my parents have done for me, and they're generally pretty chill people contrary to the intense Chinese tiger mom stereotype. But still there are times where they do me real dirty and I appreciate them a little less.
I didn't find out about this one until 4 years after they did it, which is the worst part. For the Chinese Lunar New Year, it's a tradition for family members to give out "Red Pockets" filled with money. It's kind of like Chinese Christmas where you often look forward to the present you get from that one loaded family member. In this case my grandparents were really generous and gave me a crisp $100 bill. My parents usually take this money for "safekeeping" since I was in 4th grade, but this time I guess I lucked out and they let me keep it. So I kept it in a spare wallet I never used, and just left it on top of my dresser. One day I was working on a robotics project with a few people: some of which I knew from school and some I didn't. My parents told me I should probably put away my wallet since I don't want anything to get taken, but I kinda just forgot what they said the moment they left. A few weeks pass, and I notice my wallet is gone, so I start panicking and looking around for it. I tell my parents and they start looking around to no avail. Eventually I just accepted that my wallet and $100 was lost, but my parents wouldn't let it go. They thought someone had stolen it since I forgot to put it away, and threw around these wild accusations about who did it, asking me to confront them, stuff like that. They used that incident to constantly berate me about how I wasn't responsible enough to manage money, and how I should actually listen to what they say. So yeah it really sucks; I lost a hundred dollars and my parents used it as an excuse to not trust me with any money and just keep everything I got. But four years later, after even they had forgotten about it, my dad walked into my room with something in his hand. It was my wallet with the money in it, that he had found in his nightstand. I was literally speechless from how ridiculous the situation was. The entire time my parents were nagging me about how irresponsible I was, but they had taken a hundred dollars from me and forgotten about it. Unbelievable. I guess in a way it is a free hundred dollars though, so I'll take it.
I didn't find out about this one until 4 years after they did it, which is the worst part. For the Chinese Lunar New Year, it's a tradition for family members to give out "Red Pockets" filled with money. It's kind of like Chinese Christmas where you often look forward to the present you get from that one loaded family member. In this case my grandparents were really generous and gave me a crisp $100 bill. My parents usually take this money for "safekeeping" since I was in 4th grade, but this time I guess I lucked out and they let me keep it. So I kept it in a spare wallet I never used, and just left it on top of my dresser. One day I was working on a robotics project with a few people: some of which I knew from school and some I didn't. My parents told me I should probably put away my wallet since I don't want anything to get taken, but I kinda just forgot what they said the moment they left. A few weeks pass, and I notice my wallet is gone, so I start panicking and looking around for it. I tell my parents and they start looking around to no avail. Eventually I just accepted that my wallet and $100 was lost, but my parents wouldn't let it go. They thought someone had stolen it since I forgot to put it away, and threw around these wild accusations about who did it, asking me to confront them, stuff like that. They used that incident to constantly berate me about how I wasn't responsible enough to manage money, and how I should actually listen to what they say. So yeah it really sucks; I lost a hundred dollars and my parents used it as an excuse to not trust me with any money and just keep everything I got. But four years later, after even they had forgotten about it, my dad walked into my room with something in his hand. It was my wallet with the money in it, that he had found in his nightstand. I was literally speechless from how ridiculous the situation was. The entire time my parents were nagging me about how irresponsible I was, but they had taken a hundred dollars from me and forgotten about it. Unbelievable. I guess in a way it is a free hundred dollars though, so I'll take it.
Your post reminded me of red envelopes and all the huge festivities in China during New Years. I've never actually been in China during New Years, but I've heard all about it from my relatives.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I feel a little bit bad for you since you were berated over not being responsible when you didn't actually lose the money, but found your story also a little funny. I also like how you looked on the bright side and saw it as "a free hundred dollars."
This post was really funny Mathew. My grandparents have also given me generous amounts of money during Chinese Lunar New Year. Just like yours, my parents took my money to make sure that I didn't lose it. Currently, I keep my money in a basket in my room, and recently, it has been looking pretty meager (although I haven't eaten out in a while. Hmmmm).
ReplyDeleteSometimes when I'm not home, my mom will "borrow" shirts from my closet and then forget to give them back. I think that I've lost them, and look for days, until eventually she remembers that she has them in her closet. Somehow this has happened multiple times (next time I'll make sure to check her closet first.) But I agree with you: I love my mom and really appreciate all that she's done for me, so if I have to put up with missing shirts every once in a while I'll take it.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's hilarious. That's parenting 101, teach kids responsibility by stealing from them and giving it back four years later. I hope you learned a valuable life lesson, don't trust your parents, and stealing is okay, as long as you have good intentions.
ReplyDeleteSame--I always get gift cards and such over the holidays and my birthday, but my parents keep it with a bunch of piles of mail, so everything gets lost. I recently found a $50 card from like 2 years ago -_-
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