*This is a work of non-fiction taken from social media discussion boards.*
Family is all about supporting each other when times get difficult. You can expect them to help you occasionally and, sometimes, even give you money when it's tight. However, some families might overstep boundaries and demand help when you’re unwilling to give. Such families don’t care about your needs or difficulties.
Keeping this in mind, let’s look at a man’s dilemma. He posted on Reddit asking users whether his actions were right or wrong.
The author’s family consists of his wife and eight-year-old son. He is the family's sole breadwinner, and he can make ends meet but doesn’t have money for more.
Meanwhile, his wife’s elder sister is facing financial issues because her partner doesn’t work or support the family. For her first childbirth, her husband was jailed for theft, and the author covered all pregnancy-related expenses out of sympathy.
He wrote:
However, as soon as her husband was released, she became pregnant again. Her husband is lazy and only works a few days per month, sometimes going for months without any employment. Given their situation, I ended up financially supporting her second pregnancy as well.
You would think his wife’s sister would have learned her lesson. But shortly after the second delivery, the author’s sister-in-law got pregnant again.
But this time, the author was financially struggling. He lent his sister-in-law money several times during her pregnancy, but she never repaid.
The author wrote:
After the baby was born, the hospital expenses had to be paid, and the sister's husband (38M) and his family looked at me when the bill arrived. I remained silent, and he handed me the bill. I then explained that I couldn't cover the hospital expenses this time.
I told him that we had never agreed upon it in the first place. Additionally, I pointed out that the amount we had gifted her was roughly the same as the hospital bill, so it should have covered it. The husband became angry and started speaking negatively about me.
Now, the author’s wife thinks they should at least partially contribute towards the bill, and he is confused.
What do you think? Is he wrong for not paying for his sister-in-law’s delivery due to financial issues? Or should he pay the bill even though his family is going through difficulties?
Comments / 7