What a fine sense of fairness you have, Margaret! Olga couldnt hold back. So, last summer, our children sweltered in the garden while we spent the entire year slaving away to fix up your cottageonly for Anastasias kids to enjoy all the comforts while ours sit at home? How very fair of you!
Margaret shrugged. I said it was for the children, but I never specified *only* yours! Did you think I had no other grandchildren? Yours had their turn last year; now its Anastasias. Thats only fair.
Olga scoffed. Fair? Our kids roasted in the sun while we poured money and sweat into that place, and now Anastasias little ones get the pool and the playground? Brilliant.
Bring yours next summer, Margaret said dismissively. The cottage isnt going anywhere. Were family, after all! Sometimes you help, sometimes Anastasia does. And lets not forgetits *my* cottage. Ill decide who uses it.
Oh yes, Anastasias contribution was priceless, Olga muttered. A bag of sand for the sandpit. Truly heroic.
Margaret huffed. Fairness means equal shares. Maybe Ill take yours for a month, then hers?
A *month*? At my age, Id collapse! I cant handle that many children at once.
What about two weeks?
No. Ive already promised Anastasia. She and William have July offthey want a child-free holiday. Its settled.
Olga exhaled sharply. A few days stay, after everything theyd invested? It was pathetic.
Fine. Understood. Goodbye. She hung up and pressed her palms to her temples. What now? The children had spent all year dreaming of Grannys cottagethe new swing set, the poolonly for it to go to someone else.
It had all started so innocently. Last summer, Olga and her husband, Edward, had visited Margarets crumbling cottage in the Cotswolds. The place was a relic: sagging roof, overgrown garden, peeling wallpaper, and a musty smell clinging to every room.
So much work needed, Margaret had sighed, shaking her head. Edward, start with the hedges. Ill show you which branches to trim.
Over tea, Margaret lamented, Id love to have the grandchildren visit, but what would they *do* here? No comforts, no funjust pulling weeds and chasing frogs.
Olga had looked around, remembering her own childhood summers in her grandmothers village. Even feeding chickens had felt like an adventure. Shed dug for worms with her grandfather, woven daisy chains, and marvelled at butterflies. Those were her happiest memories.
What if we all pitched in to fix the place up? Olga had suggested. Bit by bit.
Margarets eyes lit up. Exactly what I hoped youd say! Why waste money on Spain when we can invest in our own retreat?
So they did. By summers end, new windows were in. Edward repaired the fence; Olga found secondhand furniture for the kids room. The children stayed a week and returned wide-eyed.
Mum, can we go back? her youngest had begged. Grannys place is brilliant! We found snails and grasshopperseven a mouse!
Of course, Olga had smiled. Next year, itll be even better.
Margaret had beamed.
The whole year became a cycle of saving and renovating: plumbing installed, a proper loo added, a fresh coat of paint. They bought an air conditioner, built a pergola, and set up a paddling pool. The children asked daily when theyd return.
Youve done wonders! Margaret had cheered. The kids will love it!
Olga had believed they were building something togetherthat this was what family did.
Yet Anastasia had done nothing. Shed listened quietly at gatherings, only piping up onceto ask for sand.
Now, after all their sacrificeskipped holidays, pinched penniesMargarets offer was a slap in the face. *Next year.*
Olga called her mother, seething.
Margarets played you, her mum said bluntly. She couldve been upfront. Instead, she strung you along.
What do I tell the kids? Theyve been counting on this!
Rent a place instead. Itll cost less than what youve already sunk into that cottage.
But wholl watch them? Were working.
I will, her mother offered. Fresh air will do me good.
A week later, they found a cozy cabin on the outskirts of the Lake District. Small but charming, with an apple tree in the yard and a porch that smelled of pine. They bought a paddling pool and swingsthen drove to Margarets to collect the ones theyd bought.
Margaret gaped. So *this* is your response? Because I couldnt take your kids this year, youll punish Anastasias?
Olga crossed her arms. I bought those for *my* children. Anastasia can buy her own.
Margaret spluttered but said nothing.
The next month was a blur of weekends at the cabin: picnics, barbecues, the children racing through the woods, coming back with berries and sunburned cheeks. They splashed in the pool, swung till dusk, and fell asleep exhausted and happy.
Sitting on the porch with her mother and Edward, Olga realized something. This modest cabin felt warmer than Margarets refurbished cottage ever hadbecause here, no one was keeping score.
In the end, the rental cost far less than a year of renovations. Olga wondered why theyd ever trusted Margaret when alternatives were so close at hand.
This was even better than Grannys! the children declared on the drive home.
Olga smiled. At least theyd have stories to write about their summer.
Let Margaret and Anastasia fund their own upgrades, she said firmly. Well manage on our own. *Thats* fair.
The lesson was clear: shed always go the extra mile for her childrenbut never again on empty promises.
Fairness isnt just about equal shares. Its about honesty, effort, and knowing when to walk away.
