I Refused to Say Thank You for a Gift

It was not a gift. It was a tool to get a reaction out of me.

My mother-in-law needs to be the center of attention, and she needs to punish people when they do not immediately bend to her will. Lately, I displeased her by not making a big enough fuss about her birthday, so naturally, she needs to discipline me. She used my one-year-old’s Christmas gift to complete her mission, and I did not thank her for the gift. This incident leads me to change our relationship. Here’s why…

My mother-in-law lives in a different country.

Sometimes life is kind.

After ignoring my daughter’s first birthday, and her existence, (apart from the times that she could use her as a manipulation tool,) she said she was sending a Christmas gift by mail. She also stated, not asked, that she would be watching my daughter unwrap the gift on a video call at 11:15 am on Christmas day, and wanted to see her eat a Christmas cookie.

Cool. I’ll just wake her up from her nap to force-feed her sugar then. I’ll also teach her how to unwrap gifts. Any other demands? Maybe a helicopter to take you to the east coast of Egypt?

You may assume that my mother-in-law wants to see her granddaughter open the gift, so she can be a part of her pleasure and excitement. You would be wrong.

I went along with my mother-in-law’s demands, as I usually do to keep the peace. I dutifully called the hag and tried to be merry, well, civil. Upon answering, she did not say hello, Merry Christmas, or offer any other greeting. She just asked, “Where is my gift?”

How about your grandchild? No? Ok.

I collected the gift, the child, and my sanity, and helped my daughter pull at the wrapping paper. I quickly realized that it was a photo frame. My eyes nearly rolled back in my head, because I knew what I was about to see when I turned the frame around.

I flipped the photo frame over and what do you know, I was right.

Just her. Not her and my daughter. Not her and other family members. Just a professional headshot photograph of my mother-in-law.

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