02/19/2026
After five years of absence, my son, a soldier, returned home and saw me on my knees washing the floors in my own house, while his wife and her mother were sitting on the sofa, calmly drinking coffee đ˘ But then he did something after which everyone who had mocked and humiliated me for years regretted everything đ¨đ˛ The sharp smell of cleaning detergent stung my nose. I was kneeling on the cold parquet floor, scrubbing without stopping for even a second. My knees hurt so badly that I wanted to cry, but I had long learned to endure it. I was washing floors for people who couldnât even be bothered to lift their feet when I crawled past them. On the sofa sat my daughter-in-law and her mother. They were chatting, drinking tea, scrolling through their phones. To them, I was almost invisible. I heard the front door open, and my heart tightened. I lowered my head even more and started scrubbing faster. If the floor wasnât perfect, Laura â my sonâs wife â would start yelling again. She always found something to criticize. â Mom? I would have recognized that voice among a thousand. I froze, as if ice-cold water had been poured over me. Slowly I lifted my head and saw a man in a military uniform. He was standing in the doorway, tired, dusty, with a backpack on his shoulder. It was my son. My Alex. His face changed in a second. The smile disappeared when he saw me â in an old apron, with messy hair, on my knees at his wifeâs feet. â Mom⌠is that you?.. â he asked quietly. A heavy silence filled the room. Lauraâs mother lazily leaned back on the sofa and lifted her feet so I wouldnât get in her way. She took a sip of tea, as if nothing unusual was happening. â Youâre back early⌠â Laura laughed nervously and almost dropped her glass. â We didnât expect you today. Alex didnât answer. He stepped closer, knelt down beside me, and took my hands in his. His fingers tightened when he felt how rough and cracked they had become. â Whatâs going on here? â he asked in a dull voice. â She likes helping around the house, â Lauraâs mother said quickly. â Itâs good for elderly people to do cleaning. Isnât it? Alex slowly stood up. He looked around the room, at the people on the sofa, and then back at me. His face hardened. And then he took a step forward, and what he did next filled everyone with horror and made them regret everything đ˘đ¨ Continued in the first c0mment đđ
