Sometimes, helping someone can cross the line into enabling them. TikToker Coco (@theonlycocogoodvibes) works at a shelter, and one day, she received a call from a lady who was looking for housing assistance.
She was a senior citizen, and her only source of monthly income was through Social Security. She had been living with her daughter, but her daughter kicked her out, and she had nowhere else to go.
At first, it sounded like a straightforward case of someone in need, but as Coco gently asked more questions, the situation became more layered.
“She had encouraged her daughter to let her brother move in,” explained Coco. “The adult brother is 38 and doesn’t work, so she said that her daughter was tired of the brother being a mooch, and so, the mama and the brother got to go.”
The mom was offered housing at the shelter, but she immediately wanted to know if her son could have housing, too. Coco told her that he would need to pass a criminal background check with no felony convictions.
The mom said he wouldn’t qualify, but put him on the phone with Coco anyway.
When Coco spoke with the son, it became clear why he wouldn’t be eligible. He went to prison for aggravated assault three years ago.
He had gotten into a fistfight with someone and pulled a gun on them. Because of his crime, the shelter was unable to offer him housing, but Coco referred him to three places that would accept him.
She also told them about a bakery that was hiring. The bakery paid $15 to $17 an hour, depending on what shift you worked. He could start working within 24 to 48 hours. He didn’t seem too thrilled about the resources he was being provided with, though.
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In contrast, the mom was excited about the job opportunity for her son and then proceeded to say that she could get a job there as well. She lit up at the idea of both of them working at the bakery.
To Coco, it seemed like a long-standing dynamic: a mother who just wanted to be wherever her son was at the expense of her own stability and was still babying him, even though he was a grown man.
In the comments section, some TikTok users sympathized with the daughter, suggesting this was likely a pattern she had been dealing with for years. They also praised her for setting boundaries and making that painful decision to kick her family out.
“I’m sure this was the daughter’s childhood. Mom always thinking about her son,” commented one user.
“Proud of the daughter for choosing herself,” stated another.
“The daughter probably had to be independent and probably had to do a lot for her brother while growing up,” pointed out someone else.
By Emily Chan
Emily Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in... More about Emily Chan
