People Adopt Children from Orphanages – So I Chose to Bring My Grandmother Home from the Retirement Home None of My Friends or Neighbours Agreed with My Decision. They All Pointed Fingers and Said: “Times Are Tough, and You’ve Brought Someone Like Her into Your Home!” But I’m Certain, No—I Know—I’ve Done the Right Thing. We Used to Be a Family of Four: Myself, My Two Daughters, and My Mum. Sadly, My Mum Passed Away Eight Months Ago, and There Were Only Three of Us Left. In These Months, My Daughters and I Realised We Still Had Plenty of Energy and Time to Care for Someone. I Had a Close Friend from Secondary School Who, Instead of Settling Down and Building a Life, Drank Himself to Death by the Age of Thirty. Saddest Of All, He Spent His Mother’s Pension Money on Alcohol. When She Stopped Giving It to Him, He Simply Put Her in a Home, Took Her Flat, and Drank Away Her Life. I’ve Known This Woman Since I Was a Child, Just as She’s Known Me. Once a Month, My Daughters and I Would Visit Her, Bringing Treats and Homemade Bakes. My Daughters Reacted Enthusiastically to My Idea, and the Younger One, Now Four and a Half, Shouted with Glee: “We’re Going to Have a Grandma Again!” But You Can’t Imagine Just How Overjoyed This Woman Was with My Proposal! She Wept Tears of Happiness for So Long That I Had to Calm Her Down. Now, Nearly Two Months Since We’ve Brought Grandma Home, We All Absolutely Adore Her and She Loves Us. However, We’re Still Amazed by How Much Energy Our Gran Has—Even in Her Late Seventies. Every Morning, She’s Up at Six, and We All Wake to the Smell of Freshly Made Pancakes or Crepes.

Author Emily TaylorReading 2 minViews 1

People are happy to take children from orphanages, so I decided to bring my grandmother home from the nursing home.

None of my friends or neighbours approved of what I was doing. They all pointed fingers at me and said, Times are tough and youve brought someone like her into your house! But Im certainI know for a factIm doing the right thing.

We used to be a household of four: myself, my two daughters, and my mother. Sadly, eight months ago, my mum passed away, and then there were just the three of us left. Over those months, my daughters and I realised we still had plenty of energy and time to give to someone in need. I had a close friend from school who, at the age of thirty, instead of starting a family or building a career, simply drank himself to death. The worst part was that he spent his mums pension on booze. When she finally refused to give him any more money, he just dumped her in a care home, took her flat, and carried on drinking.

Id known this woman since I was a ladshe knew me just as well. Once a month, my daughters and I would visit her, bringing her various treats. My girls were thrilled with my decision, and the younger one, whos four and a half now, shouted with joy, Well have a granny again!

You simply cant imagine how happy she was when I asked her! She cried tears of joy for so long that I had to calm her down. Its been nearly two months now since we all started living together again with Grandma. We all love having her with us, and she adores us in return.

But honestly, we still dont know where she finds all this energy at her ageshes already into her eighties. Every morning shes up at six, and we wake up to the lovely smell of freshly made pancakes or crumpets.

“It’s All My Fault, Obviously! My Boyfriend’s Sister Is in Tears—She Never Imagined This Could Happen, and Now She Has No Clue What to Do, or How to Save Face My boyfriend’s sister got married a few years ago. After the wedding, it was decided the newlyweds would live with her mother-in-law. The husband’s family had a spacious three-bedroom flat with only one son. ‘I’ll keep one room, and the rest is yours!’ said the mother-in-law. ‘We’re all well-mannered people, so I’m sure we’ll get along just fine.’ ‘We can always move out!’ the husband assured his wife. ‘I see nothing wrong with giving life under the same roof as my mum a try. If we can’t get along, we can always get a flat of our own…’ And that’s what they did. As it turned out, life together wasn’t easy at all. Both mum-in-law and daughter-in-law tried, but things grew worse each day. Resentment built up, arguments became a daily occurrence. ‘You said we’d move out if we couldn’t get along!’ his wife sobbed. ‘Well, we’ve hardly tried!’ replied her husband with a patronising smile. ‘These are small things—no need to pack your bags over it.’ Exactly a year after the wedding, she became pregnant and gave birth to a healthy son. The arrival of her grandson coincided with her mother-in-law leaving her old job and struggling to find a new one, since most bosses don’t want to hire a woman nearing retirement. So mother-in-law and daughter-in-law found themselves spending nearly 24 hours a day together, unable to go anywhere, and the atmosphere at home just kept getting worse. The husband shrugged and listened to the complaints—he was now the family’s sole breadwinner. ‘Right now, we can’t leave mum on her own—she can’t pay the bills. I can’t abandon her, and I certainly can’t afford to pay both rent and support my mum. Once she finds a job, we’ll move out!’ But the young woman’s patience ran out. She packed up her belongings and her child’s and moved in with her own mother. As she left she told her husband she would never set foot in his mother’s house again. If he cared about his family, he would have to think of a solution. She was sure her beloved valued his family and would return immediately to get her back. But she was mistaken. It’s been more than three months since she moved back home, and her husband hasn’t lifted a finger to win her back. He’s still living with his mum and only talks to his wife and child by video call after work; at weekends, he visits them at his mother-in-law’s. Now, the man enjoys attention and care from two women, and his own mother has plenty of sympathy for the son abandoned by his angry wife, but takes no real responsibility for their child. The husband is on easy street—and the mother-in-law probably thinks life is grand! Meanwhile, the young wife is utterly miserable. She still loves her husband, even though she knows he’s in the wrong. ‘What did you expect when you left?’ asks her husband, ‘You can come back whenever you want.’ She probably isn’t planning to leave her mother or rent a flat, as she’s on maternity leave and just can’t afford it. Is this really the end for their family? Do you think there’s even the slightest chance for her to move back in with her mother-in-law—and come out of this with her dignity intact?”

Recently, I Visited My Daughter-in-Law, and Discovered She’d Hired a Housekeeper for the Cleaning I Always Told My Son That His Future Bride’s Financial Status Didn’t Matter to Us, So He Happily Married Mary, Who’d Never Had Much Money and Was Rather Pampered by Life After the Wedding, the Kids Moved into the House We Bought for Them My Husband and I Renovated It Ourselves, and Now We Try to Support Them Financially, Even Bringing Groceries My Daughter-in-Law Is Doing Well, Has Just Had My Grandchild, So She’s Not Working, and My Son Hasn’t Got a Fancy Job or a Great Salary You Can Imagine My Shock When I Walked into Their Home and Found a Stranger Cleaning: My Daughter-in-Law Has Hired a Housekeeper, But Does Nothing Herself—How Can She Afford This? Where’s Her Conscience? I Sent This Woman Away—After All, It’s Still My House and She Was Cleaning with My Money Where Are My Son and His Wife Supposed to Find Money for Such Luxuries? I Decided to Wait for My Daughter-in-Law, Who Was Out with My Grandchild, and Address the Matter Directly as Soon as She Returned She Explained, ‘Mum, I Became a Blogger During My Maternity Leave, Now I Earn Good Money, and I Really Need the Housekeeper Because My Work Keeps Me So Busy!’ But What’s a Blogger? Is That Really a Proper Job? Can People Actually Earn Money Doing That? And I Don’t Want a Stranger Cleaning My House ‘If You Have So Much Money, Why Not Pay Me to Clean—Strangers Needn’t Be Involved Here,’ I Said to Her She Only Muttered and Went Off to Feed My Grandson When My Son Came Home, I Told Him the Latest Family News and He Replied, ‘Mum, I Knew About the Cleaner—Maria Works Extremely Hard, and I Want to Spend My Evenings with Our Son, So I Don’t See the Harm’ I Simply Don’t Understand This Generation—How Can They Afford These Things? I Ran to My Husband, but He Just Said ‘You Mustn’t Interfere in the Young Couple’s Lives! They’re Grown-Ups and Can Manage on Their Own!’ I’ve Not Been This Angry in Ages, but I’m Sure I’m Doing—and Saying—What’s Right! What Do You Think?