It’s not easy to be a parent of a haughty, rude adolescent, and parents use numerous strategies to discipline their kids.
A mother named Heidi Johnson published a handwritten letter she penned to her son Aaron on Facebook. She had no idea the post would become quite popular. She had no intention of making the post public at all. Although it was only intended for her friends to view, she is not sorry that she posted it online.
Johnson chastised her 13-year-old son for treating her like a “roommate” in a letter to him. She continued by giving him an itemized statement totaling more than $700 for meals, rent, and other expenses. If he intended to handle her more like a roommate she would do the same thing in place of his mother.
Johnson wrote, “Love Mom,” on the message, and she genuinely does adore her kid. She wrote a second article in response, giving some more information on the circumstances. “I am not going to put my 13-year-old on the street if he can’t pay his half of the rent,” she promised parents who were condemning her. I don’t want him to make any payment. I want him to value the benefits and things we have, and to take pride in his house and surroundings.
She went on to say that she never meant for Aaron to cover the cost. Rather, she desired that he “acquire an understanding of what things cost.” Johnson wanted her kid to know “what life would look like if I was not his ‘parent,’ but rather a ‘roommate,’” so she penned the message. It was from the start a lesson in appreciation and decency.
Johnson said that her son had lied to her before she wrote the message about doing his schoolwork and that he had said, “Well, I am making money now,” in response to her warning that she would be limiting his internet access. She clarified that he was talking about a small amount of money he was getting from his YouTube channel, but Not nearly enough to cover rent and groceries.
Johnson’s connection with her son has not been harmed by the public statement. “He and I still talk as openly as ever,” she clarified. He has expressed regret several times.
Since she sent the message to her kid, Johnson has also been asked for guidance by parents. “My post seems to have opened a door,” she says, explaining that individuals feel comfortable approaching me for guidance, to vent, or even simply to have someone bear witness to their experience by listening, being vulnerable, and giving a little bit of myself in exchange.