I took my mom on a trip to the beach. She stared out at the horizon and suddenly said: "Honestly, you're really ungrateful." I froze. "Didn't you say your lifelong dream was to see the ocean? I brought you here. How am I still ungrateful?" She grabbed a handful of sand and threw it at my head in frustration. "What's the point of me coming alone? Why didn't you bring your brother's family? Even he gave me a hundred bucks, saying I shouldn't just spend your money." Sand got in my eyes, turning into tears. Calmly, I bought her the cheapest train ticket home. Then, right in front of her widening eyes, I put the gold bracelet I had intended to give her on my own wrist. Since her son was so perfect, she could go back and let him be the grateful one. 1 My mom always said her biggest regret was never seeing the ocean. So, for her birthday, I took a few days off work to surprise her with a trip to the beach, bringing my daughter along. I didn't tell her until the day we left, thinking she'd be thrilled. Instead, she had a scowl on her face from the moment we boarded the plane. It wasn't until we stood on the sand that she finally spoke. "Hannah, do you know something? You're really ungrateful." I was taken aback. "Mom, what did I do wrong?" She grabbed a handful of sand and threw it at me. "You have to ask? I live with your brother's family, but you only brought me on this trip. What does that mean? What will they think? How am I supposed to face them when I go back?" I was speechless. "Mom, you're overthinking it. I..." She cut me off. "Book tickets for your brother and his family right now. A vacation is only a vacation if the whole family is together. My conscience won't let me enjoy this alone." She immediately video-called my brother, Jason. "Son, look at this ocean! Isn't it magnificent? Didn't your wife say she wanted to see the sea? Tell her to pack. I'm making your sister buy plane tickets for all of you right now." Jason's wife snatched the phone, her voice ecstatic. "Hannah's really buying us tickets? What about hotels and food? For a family of four, that's going to be at least a few thousand dollars." My mom waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry, your sister's covering it all. She's got money. Just come and have fun. Didn't you want to go clam digging? Come experience it yourself." Hanging up, my mom's face finally softened. She started issuing commands. "Hurry up and book the flights. Then get two more rooms. They have to be five-star, oceanfront view. They don't have much money, so they deserve something nice. And transfer two thousand dollars to your sister-in-law right now so she feels secure and can have a good time." The sand in my eyes stung. I held back tears and told her, "I'm just their sister, not their mother. Why should I pay for their vacation?" 2 Her face darkened instantly. "What do you mean? You don't want to pay? Hannah, get this straight. I've lived with Jason all these years. He's the one taking care of me in my old age. You've done nothing. Why are you reluctant to spend a little money?" I wanted to laugh. "You live with Jason because you insisted on raising his kids. Your entire pension goes to them. The money I send you every month goes to them. How have I done nothing? How is he taking care of you?" "Mom, since you care about them so much, why don't you move in with me when we get back? I won't ask you to babysit or do chores. I don't need your pension. Let me take care of you, okay?" I thought she'd be happy. instead, she shoved my daughter, who was standing next to her, into the waves. "Are you crazy? Want me to raise your money-losing brat? Keep dreaming! I have my own grandsons. Why should I raise your kid? Hannah, stop talking nonsense and book the tickets." My three-year-old daughter screamed, terrified by the water. I quickly pulled her out. The night breeze made her shiver. I roared at my mom, "What are you doing? She can't swim! What if the waves took her?" She showed zero remorse. "Hmph! You care about your kid, I care about mine. So book the tickets for your brother's family." Book my ass. I found dry clothes for my daughter, then opened my phone and booked the earliest train ticket home for my mom. "Since you miss your son and grandsons so much, go back." She looked at me in disbelief. "What do you mean? sending me back as soon as we get here?" I nodded at the endless horizon. "Yes. Go back. My daughter and I will have a great time." She suddenly slapped me. "Hannah! I told you to book tickets for your brother, and you send me back on a train for hours? Is this how a daughter acts? You really are ungrateful. I knew you just wanted a vacation for yourself and dragged me along as an excuse!" 3 My face burned. My daughter reached up with her little hand to touch my red cheek. People around us started looking over. I fought back tears. "No way am I being a cash cow for Jason's family. You can stay and enjoy a few days with me, or I can put you in a cab to the train station right now. Your choice." She slapped her thigh and marched toward the ocean. "Fine, fine! With an ungrateful daughter like you, I might as well die!" She kept looking back as she walked. "Hannah, I'll show you! I'll let the sea take me! I'll make you feel guilty for the rest of your life! I'll make your daughter watch you kill me, and see if she takes care of you when you're old!" The water soaked her pants, rising past her knees. People gasped. Several women tried to persuade her. "Ma'am, come back! Why fight with your child like this? Don't joke with your life." She ignored them, walking deeper. A large wave nearly knocked her over. She screamed at me, "Are you booking the tickets? Your sister-in-law fights with Jason every day about coming here! Your nephews have never been on a trip! But you take your money-losing daughter everywhere every year! Why? Tell me, why?" "If you don't bring them here today, you'll be taking my corpse home! You'll regret this forever!" Several men stood near her, ready to grab her if a wave hit. Women pleaded with her. But she just stared at me. "Are you buying the tickets or not?" I didn't buy them. instead, I opened my backpack right in front of her and slowly put the gold bracelet I had bought for her onto my own wrist. "Mom, since you don't want to live, there's no point in giving you this bracelet." 4 She stopped trying to drown herself. She stomped back to me through the sand. "A gold bracelet for me? Good. It's your sister-in-law's birthday soon. I was worried about a gift. This will be perfect. She'll be so happy." She reached out to grab it, but I pushed her hand away calmly. "Mom, since I'm ungrateful, I'm keeping this for myself. If you want one, let your filial son Jason buy it for you. You can give it to whoever you want then." "You!" Her eyes were red with rage. "Are you crazy? That bracelet is thousands of dollars! You expect Jason to buy that? Are you insane?" I wasn't insane. I had just woken up. For years, my mom gave her money and labor to Jason's family, yet told everyone he was taking care of her and I did nothing. Fine. Then I would truly do nothing. No money, no effort, no love. I wanted to see how Jason would "take care" of her. Seeing she couldn't get the bracelet, she sat on the sand and started wailing. "Everyone come look! This ungrateful daughter is trying to kill her own mother! Judge for yourselves!" People gathered. "She took you on a trip, you should be happy. Why the temper?" She retorted immediately. "Happy? How can I be happy when she only brought me? My son and his family are waiting at home!" People were confused. "If your son wants to come, he can come. What's the problem?" "But this ungrateful girl won't buy their plane tickets! It costs over a thousand for the four of them! My son works so hard and doesn't even make that in a month. You think it's simple?" 5 The crowd was stunned. "Ma'am, are you saying your daughter has to pay for your son's family vacation?" "Shouldn't she?" My mom argued back. "She has money and doesn't take care of me. My son makes no money but takes care of me. Shouldn't she treat her brother's family to a trip?" A young woman in the crowd laughed out loud. "Ma'am, sounds like you're a free nanny for your son, paying your own way to serve them. And you call that him taking care of you? Hilarious." Everyone laughed. "Exactly. Sad to see such bias." "Slaving away for your son and convincing yourself he's a saint." "If my daughter took me on a trip and I called her ungrateful, I'd deserve to be left alone." Seeing no one on her side, my mom went berserk. She threw sand at everyone. "Get out! Get lost! None of your business!" People scattered, laughing. My mom jumped up and grabbed my hair. "Book the tickets! Now!" I refused. I told her, "If you leave now, you can catch the train. Any later, and you're stuck here." She looked ready to explode. Just as she raised her hand to hit me, Jason called. "Mom, we're packed. Did you get the tickets? Oh, and my in-laws want to come too. I'll send their info to Hannah. Tell her to buy their tickets too. Hurry up, we're waiting." She panicked. "Did you hear that? Six tickets! Hurry!" Hilarious. Even her daughter-in-law's parents? I'd have to be insane to waste my money like that. I took my daughter's hand to head back to the hotel. Suddenly, my mom snatched my daughter from me and held her over the water. "Hannah! Do you want your daughter to live? If you don't buy the tickets, I'll throw her in right now! It's just money! Do you love money more than your kid? Tell me!" 6 My daughter screamed, kicking her legs, reaching for me. "Mommy! Mommy!" I panicked. "Mom, put her down! She's three! Don't scare her!" She laughed maniacally, shaking my daughter over the waves. "Hahaha, scared now? You know how it feels to worry about your child? Now you understand me? I ask you to spend a little on your brother and you complain. You even tried to send me back alone. Hannah, you are a selfish wolf! I wasted my life raising you!" I only saw my daughter's red, tear-streaked face. My mom was right; I was terrified. As she lowered my daughter closer to the water, I screamed, "I'll buy them! I'll buy them right now! Just put her down!" She stared at me. "Show me the confirmation. Once I see it, I'll give you back your money-loser. Otherwise, I'll make you regret this forever. You'll never forget you killed your daughter over a few thousand bucks." The crowd was furious. "Ma'am, this is kidnapping!" "That's your granddaughter! Too far!" "Look at the poor kid. You don't deserve to be a grandmother." My mom didn't care. "Hmph! I don't want to be her grandmother. I have two grandsons. Who cares about a granddaughter? Her mother is ungrateful; she's paying for her mother's sins!" My daughter screamed for me. My hands shook as I tried to buy the tickets. It was just money. Nothing compared to my daughter's life. I'd give my own life for hers.
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