Mom leaves powerful note on “disrespectful” son’s door

Most adults know that “adulting” seems deceptively easy when viewed through the eyes of an inexperienced child. They see a comfortable home with food on the table and unlimited internet, often unaware of the complexities behind maintaining such a lifestyle.

One mother, wanting to teach her disrespectful son that “nothing comes for free,” found a humorous yet powerful way to convey this lesson to her 13-year-old who wasn’t ready for the responsibilities of adulthood.

In 2015, Heidi Johnson was struggling with her defiant son Aaron, who she writes “wants the perks of growing up without the responsibility that comes with it.” At the time, Aaron was earning a “teeny tiny bit of money” as a YouTuber and refused to follow his mom’s instructions about completing his homework. The young rebel stormed out of her room and declared that he was “a free person” because he was “making money.”

Responding to his behavior, the single mother penned a tough love letter to Aaron and shared it on Facebook. The post has since gone viral, almost a decade later.

“Since you seem to have forgotten you are only 13, and I’m the parent, and that you won’t be controlled, I guess you will need a lesson in independence,” Johnson begins in the “roommate contract.” She continues, “As you threw in my face that you are making money now, it will be easier to buy back all the items I bought for you in the past.”

She adds, “If you would like your lamps/lightbulbs or access to the internet, you will need to pay your share of the costs.”

The conditions in the letter required Aaron to pay for rent and utilities, cook his own meals, and routinely clean around the house. Johnson then signs off, “Love, Mom.”

Repossession

Heidi, who lives in Venice, Italy, said that when her son saw the note on his door, he crumpled it up, tossed it on the floor, and stormed out of the apartment.

The kid just needed some time to think, while she needed time to repossess some of the property in his room.

“Once he had time to think about his wrongs, he asked what he could do to start re-earning privileges,” she said. Aaron later collected items from his room that she missed and, after giving them to her, asked what he could do to start earning them back.

“It was never really about having him pay me back; it was to help him gain an appreciation of what things cost. He recognized right away that he couldn’t pay rent, utilities, or for food,” she explains.

Online users praised her creative disciplining method.

One netizen writes, “Great job. Nothing in the agreement is cruel punishment but will teach him a lesson he will carry through life.”

Another shares, “I think you are amazing. You gave your son the opportunity to learn and grow.”

“Bravo to you for acting like a parent instead of a maid,” writes a third.

‘Real World’ Lessons

Responding to a handful of users who accused her of publicly shaming her son, Johnson shares another post explaining that she is “not ashamed” of what she wrote.”

“A teenager is going to push their limits” she starts. “They are in that developmental stage where one foot is starting to cross into adulthood, while the other is still firmly planted in childhood…I cannot send this child into college or the workforce with the attitude of ‘I’ll get to it when I get to it’ when a superior tells him to get a job done. That is the real world.”

Johnson adds, “Nothing comes free. Someone is making a sacrifice somewhere down the line.”