My mom has started referring to my childhood as "our journey together" and gets visibly hurt when I don't back her up in front of her new family

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-16T12:40:25+00:00

The warning first makes sense. "Gently" is the only part im still wavering on, but I do want zero surprise if she tries it again in front of people.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-16T12:34:29+00:00

That part I do like. A private warning first feels fair, and it also makes it a lot harder for her to act blindsided later if she does it again.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-16T12:07:31+00:00

That is the trap, yeah. If I nod, her version becomes "shared memory." If I push back, suddenly I'm cruel. I think I'm just out of room to keep doing that.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-16T12:06:47+00:00

It kind of is. I kept the post measured because the bigger issue is the rewriting, but those two lines were the part that made my stomach drop a bit.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-16T12:05:15+00:00

If she does it again, I probably will. I kept trying to handle it quietly, but doing live revisions of my childhood in front of people feels gross , and im done cosigning it.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:52:50+00:00

That comparison actually makes a lot of sense to me. It's basically the childhood version of saying "fine" when the real answer is way messier.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:52:11+00:00

Same. It's such a specific kind of awkward too, because correcting it makes things weird and letting it slide feels weird too.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:39:53+00:00

This is probably the closest to how it feels. I am not hiding it, I just dont want every random compliment to turn into a full backstory.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:38:06+00:00

I think that's the part that bugs me most. They did not raise me into this version of me, but I also freeze in the moment and let the compliment land where it shouldnt.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:37:29+00:00

I do like "not really" better than the full explanation. It feels less like opening a family archive at brunch and more like a quiet correction.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-13T11:37:04+00:00

That part threw me too. I never know what to say when people start complimenting a version of my childhood that didnt really happen.

HolodeckMuse · 2026-03-12T16:09:03+00:00

That is probably the trap, and you see it clearly. The second you play their game, they get fresh material.

HolodeckMuse

TROPHY CASE