My parents bought me expensive things growing up; Finally I understood

My father always brought me a few gifts when he returned from work trips abroad. I also have lots of memories of my dad bringing me documents to sign when I was quite young.

At the time, signing across the dotted line on multiple pages seemed like a huge chore. Even when my mother made it clear to me that I had to sign the papers because my father was buying me a house or a piece of land, I wasn’t that interested. I would have preferred to play outside with my friends.

Now that I’m in my 40s, I can truly appreciate everything they’ve done for me.

They bought me jewelry as an investment

In my 20s, my birthday presents were almost always jewelry. They would bring me pieces of gold and diamonds that I asked my mother to keep for later in life, because at that time I mostly wore silver. I was also worried about losing an expensive item or that the items wouldn’t match my more casual style.

Every piece of diamond jewelry I own is a gift from my mother. At no point in my life have I saved up to buy jewelry, and I can count the times I’ve saved money to buy anything.

Experiences and travels, yes. Stuff, no. Going out for a good meal, watching an exciting show, exploring the world – these have always been my clear motivations and where I spend money.

It wasn’t until I was 30 that I realized what my parents were doing.

I was able to get the house I wanted because of my father’s forward thinking

Four years ago, when my husband and I were looking to buy a house, we were able to buy our dream home that cost more than double what we bargained for, thanks to a piece of land my father invested in for me when I he was at school. His foresight and investment meant that after we sold the land, we ended up buying our new home.

Two years ago, my first child was born and that’s when I truly understood a parent’s love and that feeling of wanting to give your child everything the world has to offer. Over the next few months, along with taking care of my daughter, I began to take more care of my finances and began to think about how I could plan for my future. This is exactly what my parents tried to do all along.

Now I am 40 years old and as I look at my daughter smiling, I see the small diamond earrings sparkling in her ears and I smile too. My parents just gave her those for her second birthday. I have no thoughts of inadequacy or focusing on what I can’t do for my child—I’m just grateful that my parents are in a position to give us all the gifts we want.