Last Chinese New Year, I excitedly woke up and gave CNY greetings to my parents, expecting to be showered with love and red packets.
I am an adult, 30 years old and single, but I still lived with my parents, so every year I was entitled to as many red packets as my younger siblings.
But that year, my mother had a rule – I was not allowed to keep the red packets I received.
Instead, I was expected to hand them all to her for “safekeeping.”
She had never done it before and was not in any financial difficulties.
At first, I thought it was a joke. I mean, I was an adult. I was responsible enough to manage my financial affairs.
I was even helping my parents out with their bills. But apparently, my mother was not convinced.
So, I had no choice but to comply. On the first night of Chinese New Year, I handed over all of my red packets to my mother.
She counted them and then put them away in her drawer.
The following days were uneventful. I was happy to be spending time with my family, but I was also a little frustrated that I had no control over my own money.
Every time I asked for some of my red packets back, my mother refused. She kept telling me that she was doing it for my own good, but I felt like she was just being unreasonable.
Finally, the day came when CNY ended. I asked my mother for my red packets, but she refused again. She said that she would give them back to me when I was ready to get married and start a family.
I was devastated. It was like she was punishing me for being single. I wanted to scream and shout, but I knew it wouldn’t do any good. I just had to accept it and move on.
So, I returned back to my room without my red packets. I felt like I was being robbed of my financial freedom.
Every single one of those red packets were blessings for me, but now I was not even allowed to use them.
I still don’t understand why my mother thought she had the right to control my money like that.
I guess that’s just the way she is – stubborn and unreasonable.
I just hope that when I’m ready to get married and start a family, my mother will finally give me back my red packets.