Poor Girl Learns Story of Family Heirloom She Pawned and Runs to Buy It Back

The woman decided to move out of her house, but she realized she didn't have a penny. She rummaged through her mom's jewelry box and found what she thought was the least expensive ornament, and walked off with it.

As humans, all of us make mistakes, and occasionally, there are instances where a second chance is what we need to make things right.

But at times, it can be pretty hard to give someone that second chance, as proven in Redditor throwaway160672's story on the "AITA" subreddit.

The post's author turned to the forum's random strangers for moral judgment after stealing her mom's most prized possession that she mistakenly thought was the least expensive.

The 18-year-old Original Poster (OP) said it wasn't the first time her mom told her she didn't want her in the house. However, it finally dawned on her after her mom walked into her room at an "unfortunate" time. She saw OP and her girlfriend together and instantly lost it.

In an instant, OP connected a couple of dots and realized why her mom was so sensitive about the ornament.

After OP's mom shouted at her that night, things took a dramatic turn. OP thought it was enough and packed all her stuff to leave for her girlfriend's place. Just then, OP realized she had no money and found her last resort in the jewelry box where her mom had heaps of unused and expensive ornaments.

OP's ongoing friction with her younger brother and mother made it evident that she couldn't ask them for money. She felt lonely, homeless, and broke, so she rummaged through her mom's jewelry and found an expensive gold and gem-encrusted bracelet.

Since OP was sure her mom never wore the piece and hadn't mentioned it before, she decided she would melt it down or sell it to make some money. After meeting several buyers, OP learned it was a 14K gold bracelet encrusted with a diamond. She sold it for $450, and with that, in addition to her savings, she was able to buy her necessities and a computer for work.

A few months later, OP's mom unexpectedly showed up at her office and made a scene about the missing bracelet. Suddenly, OP connected a couple of dots and realized why her mom was so sensitive about the ornament. It turned out that the bracelet was given to OP's mom by her mother, who died when she was 16.

OP knew she'd messed up and immediately owned up to stealing the jewelry. Her mom turned away and walked off, but OP knew it wasn't her envisioned reaction.

The real bomb dropped on OP the next day when she rummaged through her emails. Her mom's lawyer had sent a complicated email threatening legal action. Although OP knew she was wrong, she tried to rationalize her urge to steal the ornament.

"I honestly think that given the situation, my stealing it was kind of justifiable," she stated as she asked Reddit to judge her morally. To her horror, the judgment was swift and intense.

In the post's top-voted comment, Redditor moongirl12 lashed out at OP, stating that theft was what it is and it doesn't count for a person to avoid responsibility.

While most flocked to the thread and called out OP, Redditor GlaxenFlux put things into perspective for her. The person explained that OP's mom didn't kick her out, but it was she who voluntarily moved out.

The person told her that she didn't steal out of desperation, but she stole it as she rationalized it after he mother shouted at her, adding:

"You committed a crime you're trying to justify with selfish reasoning...Not to mention it's going to cost you way more than you got for it."

Meanwhile, others like user superfastmomma launched into full-on rants and affirmed that nobody was allowed to take things that didn't belong to them. "That's stealing. That's illegal," the person said.

After rummaging through the insightful feedback, OP agreed that the verdict was crisp and clear. Although she admitted she wasn't worried about the emails and was sure her mom wouldn't dare to sue her, she returned with an important update on her issue.

"After a few hours of walking around and arguing with old guys, I got the bracelet back… I let my mother know," she revealed.

Questions to Ponder:

Do you think OP's mom could reconsider her decision and forgive her daughter for robbing her heirloom?

When OP's mom found out her daughter had stolen the heirloom bracelet that was once her mom's prized possession, she lost it and immediately threatened OP with legal consequences. As a parent, do you think OP's mom could rethink her decision and mend OP instead of dragging her to court?

Would you steal something from your parent and justify it?

OP claimed she wasn't aware that her mom's bracelet was highly sentimental. She also justified her theft due to her helplessness. Do you think it would still be agreeable to steal from a parent and justify that it was done out of desperation? If you were OP, would you steal from your parent?

If you liked reading this story, here's one about a 91-year-old marine who survived surgery and identified the thieves who robbed all his money & important documents while he was unconscious.

All images are for illustration purposes only. Would you mind sharing your story with us? It might inspire & change someone's life. If you'd like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.