26/12/2025
One Christmas I asked my mother what she wanted.
She laughed and said, “Give me a lot of money.”
I thought she was joking, so I asked why.
She said, “Because the most money I’ve ever seen at once is a £20 note. I just want to know what big money looks like.”
That Christmas, she opened her gift and found a huge amount of cash. She froze. I told her she was keeping it.
The following year, when I asked her the same question, she pointed at me and said,
“Whatever you do, don’t give me money again.”
Then she told me what happened.
Relatives she’d never heard of suddenly found her.
Family members started arguing about her money without involving her.
Neighbours lined up with emergencies, plans, and long stories.
If she had said yes to everyone, she would’ve needed millions.
When she said no, people got angry. Some stopped greeting her. Others treated her like she had wronged them personally.
That’s when my mother learned something important:
Money doesn’t just change your life, it changes how people feel entitled to you.
Now every Christmas, when I ask her what she wants, she smiles and says,
“Peace. Nothing else.”
Evander Holifield
