A letter from a mother to her disrespectful son: "If you think you can support yourself, here's your bills"
It is not easy to deal with an adolescent child and, sooner or later, clashes with parents will come. Children who go through the adolescent period want to feel autonomous and also begin to detach themselves from the ideas of their parents in order to demonstrate their independence. Obviously, up to the age of 18, they depend exclusively on their parents, and perhaps they need to learn a little more respect for those who put food into their mouths.
Heidi Johnson is a mother who clashed with her 13-year-old son, Aaron, over very typical parent-child issues: the teenage boy lied about having done his homework, didn't clean his room and, moreover, he replied disrespectfully to his mother. During the argument, the teenager mentioned that he could now earn some of his own money through Youtube, so his mom came up with a very creative punishment.
Heidi couldn't let her 13-year-old son, Aaron, get away with the fact that he had lied to her about doing his homework and refusing to do some simple household duties. On top of that, the boy also replied in a disrespectful manner during the argument. According to Aaron, he was now able to make a living as a Youtuber. "Oh yes?" Mom must have thought, "Now I'll show you all about making money on Youtube". The woman wrote a letter addressed to her son and gave it to him the next morning by slipping it under his door. Before giving it to her son, however, she photographed it and posted the photo to her Facebook account in order to let her friends and relatives see the solution for her spoiled child. The post has been viewed and commented on by thousands of users, and has unexpectedly gone viral.
In the letter, Heidi clearly told her son that if he is truly able to make money and be independent, then he will need to start seriously contributing to the household expenses. Fixed costs listed were: $ 430 for rent, $ 116 for electricity, $ 21 for internet use, and $ 150 for food. Among the various household tasks detailed were: taking out the trash, dusting and vacuuming on set days, keeping the bathroom clean and cleaning it thoroughly, preparing his own meals, and cleaning up immediately afterwards. Did the young man want to be independent? Well, this is what independence actually means!
In the letter, the mother also specifies that, if the son would like to reconsider and would prefer to go back to being her son, rather than just a roommate, this could be negotiated.
The opinions of users were mixed, as many praised the mother's educational method, while others strongly criticized it. A 13-year-old boy, on one hand, obviously cannot look after himself as if he were an adult. Either way, the mother's method worked - even though Aaron's immediate reaction was anger and rage. Eventually, however, Aaron calmed down and apologized to his mother; even more important is the fact that he understood how wrong he was in lying to her. From now on he stated he won't do it anymore. What can we say ... a life lesson learned!
