The journey into wedded bliss is often celebrated with love, as it should be, but the looming expenses associated with weddings can turn joy into stress.
This is something a dad vented about, when he took to Reddit to detail the conundrum he faced when he was confronted with his daughter’s extravagant wedding dreams.
The father, who comes from New York, posted on the Reddit thread AITA (Am I The A*****e) about how he had initially made a heartfelt promise to finance his daughter’s wedding, a common commitment parents make to support their children as they embark on married life.
However, the father’s generosity faced an unexpected test when he discovered the sheer scale of his daughter’s wedding aspirations.
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Contrary to conventional expectations, the daughter’s dream wedding wasn’t a local affair; instead, it was an opulent destination wedding set in the scenic landscapes of New Zealand with a guest list of between 100 and 200!
Not only this, it would carry a staggering price tag of $200,000. This revelation left the father at a crossroads, torn between his paternal instinct to fulfill his daughter’s wishes and his reservations about the extravagant display of wealth, which he described as “burning money” and feared would alienate family members.
The father shared his dilemma, writing: “My wife feels I should do it because we can afford it, but I find it to be a pointless showing of wealth. Now my daughter is not talking to me, nor is my wife. Which got me thinking should I bite the bullet and essentially burn money, and alienate family members to make my daughter’s dream wedding a reality?”
Redditors swiftly weighed in with their opinions, with one person writing: “If she can’t pay for a destination wedding on her own, then she shouldn’t be having a destination wedding. It seems cruel but it’s true. Not to mention there’s so much more money involved with the flights and the hotels and stuff. Is she going to be paying for her own ticket or are you expected to fork out for them too? And her fiancé’s ticket.”
They continued: “Not to mention the fact that she’s thrown a strop and isn’t talking to you tells me she doesn’t deserve it. I’m a believer of we are not entitled to our parents money. I don’t expect any inheritance off of my dad if he ever passes, even though he has a big life insurance. I would rather have my dad than the money.”
Credit / Getty.
One Redditor even proposed a compromise: the father should only contribute an amount he was comfortable with, which would allow the daughter to plan her wedding within that budget.
“Establish the amount of $$ you are willing to provide and give her the budget. Tell her anything above that is on her and her fiance. Make sure to tell her if that includes travel, etc for the bridal couple and family members. If she wants a blow out wedding, she can pay for it,” they wrote.
So far, the father has not made any updates, only that his daughter is calling him a jerk and is refusing to speak with him… How ungrateful!
This story definitely serves as a reminder of how challenging it can be to navigate the delicate balance between generosity and practicality, especially as a parent.
What would you do in his situation? Let us know in the comments!