Mom gives away 16-year-old daughter's favorite limited-edition t-shirt, sparking confrontation between the two: 'My mom says that I shouldn't be upset because [she] bought it'

Author image for Brad Dickson
Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Nov 25, 2024 12:00 PM EST

Regardless of whether or not you've achieved immaterial enlightenment or are neck deep in the current iteration of the social-media-fueled consumerist frenzy, it's more than likely that you possess things that are your favorite. Chances are these items have some sort of sentimental value—a keepsake from a loved one or photographs that are irreplaceable despite having no measurable value. They may have some monetary value, too, regardless of whether or not you'd ever want to sell them. Heck, maybe there's an item that is your favorite simply because it's comfortable: who hasn't had a favorite t-shirt or sweatshirt? I lost my favorite grey baggy sweatshirt a little over a year ago. It fit quite unlike anything I've ever worn before, and I haven't stopped missing it since. 

We're also taught that as we value our own things, we should respect and value others. Usually, it's our parents teaching us this lesson, but that doesn't mean they're infallible, sometimes giving away items of ours that they deem to be old or worn-out or that they don't care for, like when my mother gave away my little plastic toolbox from when I was a small child that I had planned to pass on to my own children. 

That's pretty much what this mother did when she gave away her daughter's favorite t-shirt, sparking disagreement between the pair. Her daughter blew her top, and when she had cooled off a bit, she turned to this online community to share her story and see whether or not she was in the wrong for doing so. 

Advertisement
  • 01
    Cheezburger Image 10433048576
    via ian dooley
  • 02
    AITA for screaming at my mom over a t-shirt? Not the A-he So I [19F] recently moved out for university, but before that I bought this t-shirt that featured my favourite TV show of all time. It was a limited edition collaboration so it's basically never coming back. I loved that shirt so much and bragged about it a lot to my friends because it was pretty pricey and we all loved
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 03
    the show. Anyway I moved out and I kept that shirt at home so I could wear it during summer breaks and I also didn't want it to get lost while moving. But recently a family friend came to visit and their daughter really liked the shirt too and my mom just decided to give the shirt to her? She said that it was because I wasn't going to wear it anymore
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 04
    since I'm an adult now. But I was going to wear it!!! I basically screamed at her and cried a lot but my mom says that I shouldn't be upset because it was technically my mom that bought it (I used her money) but I'm just so sad over this. I'm still fuming and crying about it but maybe I was in the wrong.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 05
    OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the ahle: I screamed at my mom over a t-shirt that I really liked. She paid for it so technically I don't own it.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 06
    BENZ_1989 Not the a hole, I also left many stuff when moving away for college and I would definitely expect to go back home and use my things when I go back. I went back for my summer break and it was a relief to know I had things that I could wear while there so my suitcase didn't have to be as packed, and also I took some things back to uni to renew my closet. I'm here with you!
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 07
    xtine254 NTA. I'd call the family friend and ask for the tshirt back. If they refuse, I'd make a public post and tag them and mom. I've learned to make people uncomfortable, cos they have no problem making you uncomfortable.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 08
    Hampster-cat If the mom doesn't care about your feelings, then maybe find out the price of the shirt on ebay. Ask her to replace it. Buy off ebay or get the original back. Her choice.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 09
    enchylatta How did the daughter find the shirt? Was she just rummaging around in your room?
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 10
    another_online_i... NTA. It doesn't matter whose money was used when purchasing the item - it was purchased for you specifically therefore it became your property.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 11
    Logical_Read9153 I think screaming and crying seems over the top, but no your mom should not have given away something that belongs to you.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 12
    Jormungandr28 NTA. They should have shown respect and asked you first.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 13
    DecemberViolet1... NTA- as the mother of grown kids who have gone away to college, I never would have even considered just giving away any of my kids' belongings without checking with them. Of course you're
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 14
    upset! It would have taken literally two seconds to send you a text asking if you minded if her friend's daughter could have it. If you had given something of hers away, I'm sure she would have been angry too.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 15
    lordnewington 14d ago. NTA. That was your property whether or not you were going to wear it. Can you replace the shirt? | know it had sentimental value, but I've done this with a few precious things I've lost/broken over the years and I find the happy memories still attached to the replacement thing even if it isn't the very same "copy". YMMV.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 16
    [deleted] Info: was their any conversation about the stuff you left behind?
    via Cautious-Rule-4529
  • 17
    MrsPad80s_blon... NTA. My mum was ALWAYS giving my clothes away to my cousin, and I wouldn't even know until I saw my dress or jumper on her the following week.
    via Cautious-Rule-4529

Want More? Follow Us and Add Us as a Preferred Source on Google.

Tags

family dynamics teens family drama aita AITAH teenagers siblings moms family feud parenting family pregnant reddit thread parent raising kids Parenting Fail parents children
Scroll Down For The Next Article