Dealing with the loss of a family member, especially one's mother, is oftentimes a hard pill to swallow. Therefore, having your loved ones beside you is essential. Moreover, it could help you deal with the emotional pain of loss. However, for this man, his heartbreak was doubled. He ended up breaking up with his girlfriend who prioritized work over going to his mother's funeral.
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While I would take anything from Reddit with a grain of salt, the story published by user Alone-Profession-174 in the AITAH subreddit (an Am I The *sshole variant) provides a valuable lesson that might be more common than we expect. The user shared how his mother was diagnosed with cancer and tragically died at the beginning of December.
"We arranged the funeral and it was for last week. I've been with my girlfriend for just under four years," the user said. "We were talking about the funeral plans and I assumed my girlfriend would be coming with me but she said she can't as she has a presentation at work and has to make sure work gets handed over before she's off over Christmas."
Compassionate Leave?
According to the user, his girlfriend was entitled to a day of "compassionate leave." However, she decided not to take it given the work she needed. "I asked if she was seriously prioritizing work over supporting me and she said she couldn't help needing to hand things over," the user continued. "I walked away after she said that. The day of the funeral came and she went to work while I was preparing for the funeral. She just said she hopes it goes okay and she'll be thinking of me."
Eventually, the funeral day arrived, and it was, understandably, an emotional day. However, for the user, it was even sadder. He saw how his relatives and siblings all were accompanied by their significant others. He couldn't help but wonder if his then-girlfriend was the right person for him.
"When I got home my girlfriend asked how it went and I just told her we were over," the user wrote. "She said I shouldn't be punishing her for needing to work but I just said I want a partner who actually supports me and it's clear she doesn't."
His ex-girlfriend called him irrational and insisted he was punishing her for prioritizing work. However, the user's decision stayed, and the couple was no more. Many Reddit users agreed with the man's actions, stating that a partner's support is vital and that there is no way a pre-Christmas handover should be more important than your partner's mother or any relative dying.
