The Dilemma of the Teenage Daughter & Her Mother’s Neverending Offspring: A Reddit Parable
Oh, the splendid chaos and matrix of family life! Buckle up, folks, because today we’ve got a juicy tale straight out of the ever-entertaining labyrinth of Reddit. Our protagonist? A 15-year-old girl (15f), who’s on the verge of a minor rebellion—with an invitation to a vacation, a steadfast mother, and a family that screams the reincarnation of Noah’s Ark.
The Protagonist’s Plight
Picture this: A teenage girl with eight siblings, ranging from 23 down to 3 years old. Yes, you read that correctly—eight siblings. Our young heroine, a resilient 15-year-old, is like a maternal sidekick in a household teeming with kids, and now Mom’s incubating baby number 10. She’s ecstatic for her mom, even if she’s left scratching her head as to why on Earth another tiny human is necessary.
Now, our protagonist isn’t just another kid; she’s practically the unpaid, cousin’s-best-friend’s-sister-who-babysits-too-much. No offense, but this girl’s been skipping school to take care of her siblings. Unironically, she gets zip, zero, nada in return. It’s like Cinderella but without the eventual fairy godmother intervention. And while we all love a good sacrifice-for-the-greater-good story, let’s just say the ‘greater good’ here has been awfully demanding.
So, What’s the Catch?
The drama unfolds when her boyfriend’s family invites her to a vacation—2 hours away, and it’s conveniently 3 days post her mom’s estimated due date. Now, you might be thinking, ‘Big deal? Why not just go?’. Well, Mother Dearest decides to drop the hammer and bans our young protagonist from going because she doesn’t want her to miss the birth.
Let’s riff on that for a moment, shall we? The teenager has been the diligent sibling-shepherd through the births of SEVEN younger siblings. She’s seen more birth action than an obstetrician intern! And, for the love of sanity, she even films the births. Talk about child labor laws, am I right?
But wait, there’s more! Mom’s excuse is that if it were ten days earlier—meaning during our girl’s own birthday—she wouldn’t mind her absence. So, let me get this straight: Ms. Momster would miss her own daughter’s birthday without a blink but can’t survive childbirth without her 15-year-old videographer? It’s like logic took a vacation to the Bermuda Triangle.
The Question
So, here we have our teenage rebel at a crossroads, asking the morally loaded (but rhetorically justified) question: ‘Would I be the asshole if I just went on this vacation?’
Now, from a purely ethical standpoint, rebelling against familial duties feels like a red flag. Yet, when your familial responsibilities start resembling a Dickens novel rather than a modern family dynamic, all bets are off, sugar pie.
Verdict (and Sassy Commentary)
Okay, darlings, let’s get real. Mom’s love for procreation shouldn’t overshadow a teenager’s right to a measly vacation. Sure, familial loyalty is admirable, but we’re talking about a girl who’s practically been a second mom without the 401(k) benefits.
Our dear protagonist deserves this break more than a reality TV star deserves their stage time. And for Mom, a word of advice: your kids are not your camera crew. It’s time to release the iron grip and let Cinderella attend the ball—or in this case, an inviting two-hour getaway that doesn’t involve changing diapers or dodging bodily fluids.
So, would she be the asshole for going? Hell, no! She’s earned this trip ten times over. And if Mom can’t handle one birth without turning it into a Bollywood production, maybe it’s time to reconsider the casting. The rest of us will just be here with popcorn, hoping she doesn’t miss her chance to breathe free and bask in the joy of teenage normalcy—if only for a few days.
To my readers, remember this: Life’s too short to be the unpaid doula in someone else’s spotlight. Shine on and seize your mini-vacations with defiant glee!
Original story
I, 15f, have 8 siblings (23m, 20m, 17m, 13f, 10f, 8f, 5m, and 3m) so my mom (43f) got pregnant AGAIN, in november, she told me about it in january, i was ofcourse happy for her but didn’t know why she would want another child, she refused to abort since she is a Christian, i’ve been there with the all the births (at home births) after me, i never ask her anything, do what she says, help raising my siblings and even call in sick on school so i can watch HER kids, and always help with chores around the house, mind you: i dont get any money or amything in return, i also dont get allowence. Once a week i ASK TO HANG OUT on WEEKENDS, AFTER finishing my homework, and the trainrides, he pays for so i dont even ask her for money.
flash forward to now, my boyfriend(16m) and his familly invited me to go to vacation, it would only be like a 2 hours drive away, but it was 3 days after due date for child birth, so my mom said no because she didnt want me to miss it, I myself hate being in such moments because first of all there would be blood and it makes me puke and second of all, she makes me film the births, wich i find very weird and is a uncomfortable moment for me, i dont know why i wouldn’t be allowed to go, since she is the one giving birth for as she called it “the last child” wich she has been saying ever since she had me. She said that if it would be 10 days earlier she wouldn’t mind, wich i would find weird because my birthday would be in the middle and she would miss my birthday, wich apperantly she doesn’t care about, so my question is, WIBTA if i would just go?
EDIT: yes, my parents are together, we do have a father EDIT NR 2.: i DO have premission from my father.