Claudia doesn’t worry about anything because she only wants what’s best for her son. But her mother-in-law is a strict, traditional woman who always has the last word. Claudia is shocked by what she sees when she gets back from leaving her mother-in-law with her son Jackson.
Never did I think that the woman who raised my husband would be so mean.
Still, there she was, grinning: my mother-in-law Judith.
There were never any good times between my mother-in-law and me. She was a very traditional woman who expected her family to serve her and strongly believed in traditional gender roles.
One time, Harvey, my husband, told me that his mom had thrown out his sister’s toys because she found him playing with them.
“It must have been about a year,” he said. She’s always been that strict, though. Since I want to be honest, it’s quite silly.“
Unlike her family, I wouldn’t give in to anyone’s whims, especially when it came to my beliefs and my family.
Even though Judith and I had many nasty fights over the years, we always managed to be polite.
I did, however, press Harvey after the birth of my son Jackson.
I told her, “She can be there as much as she wants to.” “But she won’t tell me how to raise our son,” I said.
Harvey agreed, and we continued to raise our child according to our own rules, without any old ideas about what a “traditional” guy should be like.
She was mad that I would question the matriarch’s views, but she did it for Harvey and Jackson. She never hesitated to tell me how she felt about me, though.
I was okay with that. That wasn’t strong enough for me.
But I had no idea what she was going to do on my son’s second birthday.
It occurred to Harvey and me that we could always throw our kids a party for their birthdays.
We said yes to having our families over for Jackson’s second birthday party at our house.
Even though Judith didn’t like my son’s hair, she still loved him.
She told Claudia a few weeks before the party, “Long hair is for girls.”
“You need to cut it.” Jackson is not the child of a famous person. They choose strange things for their children.
I told them, “I’m not going to do that.” Jackson’s hair looked great the way it was.
My son was dressed as a superhero, and his golden hair was dancing around his face.
Judith came into our house holding a gift bag.
She said, “It’s saved for later.” “I’ll get it after the cake.”
As soon as Jackson’s birthday party started, our kids took over the house. When it was time to sing and cut the cake, my son shone like the sun.
After we fed all the kids, Judith said, “Claudia.” “May I please have a cake and some tea?”
After seeing how well she had acted, I couldn’t say no. When I left, Jackson was sitting on his lap and eating a piece of his birthday cake. The frosting was all over his fingers.
But when I turned around to see what broke my heart into a million pieces, I was with the cake ready for her.
Jackson’s golden curls, which had been on his face just moments before, were cut off by his grandma and were now all over the floor. The gift bag, which I thought held the scissors she had used, was lying at her feet.
I couldn’t figure out why her eyes were filled with hate as she looked at her work.
He was on her lap when she told him, “There.”
“What did you do?” When the cake fell from my hands, I ordered.
“I’m just playing,” she said in a tone that was full of fake innocence. “It will grow back.” Allow him to feel what it’s like to have short hair as a boy.
“Leave!” I let out a cry.
It’s not really important. It will grow back. He told her, “Get over it!” She barked.
Not that important? Leave the area before I call the police!” I cried out loud.
Harvey ran in after making some of the other parents laugh on the porch.
“What’s going on, Claudia?”
Harvey got very angry as soon as he saw what was going on, so I didn’t need to say anything.
And Harvey talked to his mother in a way that made it impossible for them to agree or get along for the first time since we got married.
“Mom, leave now.” “And don’t think you’ll be welcome back into our house,” he said in a low growl full of betrayal and anger instead of his usual soft voice.
Judith tried to explain her actions by saying that Jackson’s hair would grow back and that it wouldn’t be a big deal. We knew, though, that this was just the beginning of a fight with Judith that we had not asked for.
Even though Jackson seemed fine, he kept putting his hands to his head, as if he wanted to feel for his curls again.
As Harvey and I held our son close, we promised to keep him safe. But the damage was already done since Judith did what she did on her own.
Harvey’s dad and sister got back at us, saying we had hurt and insulted Judith over small things. But we also knew we had to stand firm for our kid and protect the foundation of our family.
How would you react if you were in my shoes?
Here is one more story for you: Janisse really loves her birthdays. Because of this, she wants to have a fancy dinner party at home for her husband’s birthday with family and friends. Things quickly get out of hand, though, when her mother-in-law shows up and takes charge.
