Teen Asks Mom To Give Her H&M Gift Cards As She Always Has Bad Taste In Buying Her Christmas Clothes, Mom Gets Heartbroken

"I tried, failed and then I let it go"

Maryjane

• Published in Interesting
• December 11, 2023

Giving gifts is a very old custom that predates maybe even humanity. It was presumably a widespread practice in prehistory, fostering relationships of trust that helped to preserve amicable relations between various social groups.

We used to be excited about some of the things we got as kids—that new toy truck, the newest video game, amongst other things. We kindly thanked the givers and moved on to the next person.

Sometimes, hidden amongst those gifts are underpants and socks. What a dull bunch of gifts they were, and the OP of today's story was pretty tired of the type of gifts her mom got her.

OP's mom is the embodiment of a stay-at-home mom for her and her younger siblings. Growing up, all of the girls got the same haircut as their mom, the same clothes styles, etc.

But the OP is kind of the polar opposite of her extroverted character, and that was always considered "problematic behavior."

So I tried to be proactive and made the "only H&M gift cards instead of clothes" rule for clothes related presents a few years ago. I argued it would be fun to go shopping together. With the thought, it would be quality time and a good way for her to see what I like. Since she insists on gifting clothing.

It worked for a while, but her mom once again gave her clothes, and this time, she totally hated the sweater down to the color. Her mom was heartbroken over the incident, and you can read the full story below.

The headline

The story begins

The concluding part

OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the a-hole:

I asked for the receipt of a christmas present sweater because it didn't fit. Now I'm wondering if I just should have said nothing.

And the comments roll in...

OP's mom ignored this

This Redditor summarizes the whole story

What is the point of giving gifts?

The OP was as tactful as she could be

The OP shared this info in the comments

The thing with my mom is complicated and the sweater is just one of many hiccups. That's why I needed perspective. I didn't want to get stuck in my own head before I talk it out with her. (Solution oriented, of course. Not to make things worse)

A part of the sweater gift was the expectation that I had to wear it. Often. In public. Doing otherwise lead to her being upset with other similar gifts in the past. I explained it better in another comment reply.

She's not trying to find what OP likes

Gift cards

Letting her complain

Tell her to grow up

Whatever the present, there is something profoundly meaningful about the custom of giving gifts that makes us smile, no matter how old we get. The OP doesn't just like her mom's taste in clothes, and it could be her mom's perception of her being "bigger" than she really is.

OP says that her mom always made it clear that she's too fat since she grew breasts that are bigger than the family average.

Maryjane