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Aita for taking my neighbor's garden gnome?
This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
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This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
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I can't lie; I cackled as I read through this story. It is objectively hilarious, although it is incredibly cruel given the real negative effects that it is having on the children. Mom was absolutely justified in getting rid of the source of her kids' terror.
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This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
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This could totally be the plot of a Goosebumps book from the 80s. Seriously, what if the gnome really is evil, and the neighbor has no idea?
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Mischevious neighbor terrifies 6 and 4-year-old siblings with garden gnome they believe is alive, their mom snaps and throws it away after weeks of relentless pranking: "I finally have peace"
Kids are totally new to this world; their actions and reactios are completely intuitive, unaffected by social norms. As such, the things that they find frightening tend to seem a nonsensical; conversely, many children seem completely unfazed by conventionally scary things. My favorite movie at 4 years old was The Mummy (2001); you can rag on my parents all you want for letting me watch it, but it surprisingly never gave me nightmares. However, I was totally incapable of watching Disney's Alice in Wonderland until middle school — especially that bit where the pencil creature erases her path home.
In our story today, two small kids develop an irrational fear of their neighbor's lawn gnome. Even though her garden is covered in them, they fear a particular statue with a purple hat. When she catches wind of the kids' fear, she begins to play some mean-spirited pranks that have pretty adverse effects on the poor kiddos.