I am in my 30s and currently live in Canada with my husband and three children. I went through a failed marriage and have one child from that relationship. Later, I remarried, immigrated to Canada, and eventually sponsored my child to join me. My husband and I then had two children together. A few years ago, I brought my mother to Canada.
This summer, our family is planning a trip back to Vietnam to visit relatives. Plane tickets for the five of us would cost around VND200 million (US$7,600). My mother offered to pay for her own ticket and for my eldest child’s ticket. She has a special bond with her first grandchild and understands my situation, and so wanted to help ease the financial burden.
The woman’s husband objected after her mother paid for a plane ticket for her child from a previous relationship. Illustration photo from Pexels |
I did not think much of it. My mother is not wealthy enough to pay for the entire family’s airfare. Thanks to her help, my husband and I would only need to cover the tickets for four people.
To my surprise, my husband reacted very strongly. He said my mother was being unfair and only cared about my first child while ignoring our two younger children. He argued that if she wanted to help, she should do so equally for all three children; otherwise, she should not pay for any of them.
He then told me that if I still intended to take my eldest child to Vietnam using the ticket my mother paid for, he would stay in Canada with our two younger children. That comment left me deeply hurt and disappointed.
What pains me even more is that after so many years together, my first child still seems to be a sensitive issue for my husband. Whenever something involves that child, it quickly turns into an argument about fairness and family finances.
Now I do not know what the right thing to do is. Should I refuse my mother’s offer to pay for the ticket just to keep the peace with my husband? I would appreciate readers’ advice.
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