"My parents asked me to use all of my life insurance award to pay off their mortgage"
In dark times, many people turn to their families for support and help: most parents are always ready to help their children in any way possible. But some parents expect their help to be rewarded - perhaps not out of greed, but out of necessity. In this regard a young widow - who we will call Carol here - described her dilemma to internet users: to what extent should we be grateful to parents who have helped us out of a hole?
via Reddit
"My husband (26) passed away a few months ago and left me with a life insurance policy. I was only expecting a few thousand dollars, but the payment turned out to be substantial," Carol recounted. Unfortunately, Carol's husband suffered from a long illness and, towards the end, the couple needed help: Carol's parents welcomed them without hesitation, allowing them to move into the family home. But now that Carol has been prematurely widowed and has collected her insurance money, her parents expect her to use all the funds to pay off their mortgage. "Paying off the mortgage will take all of my insurance money," Carol explained.
"My mom expects me to do this for them. When the insurance check came - for $300,000 dollars - the first thing my mom said was 'now you can pay off our mortgage'. But I actually don't want to do this. I feel bad and, while I am extremely grateful for their help, this request seems excessive to me", Carol said.
"I really don't know how to deal with this problem and I'm really questioning myself and wondering if I'm being greedy", Carol said, also explaining that she hopes to buy a home of her own and to put some aside the money for retirement: "I'm happy to give them some money to show my gratitude, but the idea of giving them all of it makes my stomach ache,” she concluded.
Web users supported Carol, stating that the real "greedy" ones are her parents: "Subtract every dollar you've already spent while your parents were "offering you help" and give them the difference. I have a feeling it won't be much. And only do this if you're feeling generous. Your mom probably won't appreciate it, but do whatever feels right in your heart. They should have let you stay with them for free, with no strings attached - except maybe utilities and food, which you said you paid for. You don't owe them anything,” commented one user. What do you think about this story?
