My Husband Refuses to Care for My Elderly Mother Who Had a Stroke, So I’m Forced to Make a Difficult Decision That Affects the Entire Family

I am Miguel Santos , 36 years old, and have been working as a technical staff in an electronics company in Quezon City for a long time . My wife, Liza , is also a hardworking and energetic employee in a private office. We have two children — a boy and a girl — and after years of saving and sacrifice, we finally bought the house of our dreams. It is not big, but it is enough to make our family comfortable. For us, it is a symbol of all the hardships and cooperation we have had over the years.

I thought our lives were peaceful and orderly, until the unexpected happened. Last year, my mother in Batangas suddenly had a stroke and paralyzed half of her body. Dad had been dead for a long time, and Mom lived alone. I was the only son, and my sister was married and living in a distant province in the Visayas, so we rarely went home.

When I heard the news, my heart was pounding. I immediately filed for leave from work and returned to Batangas to take care of him. I saw him lying there, thin and helpless, and I felt the weight of the situation. He was the one who raised us all alone, enduring hardships just so we wouldn’t be left behind. Now, I can’t bear to see him like this.

After a few days in Batangas, I knew I couldn’t keep being absent from work. So I talked to Liza and suggested that we bring Mom to our house in Quezon City so she could be better cared for.

But she immediately refused.
She said she was at a point in her career where she had a high chance of being promoted to head of the department. She said she couldn’t stop taking care of her mother-in-law. She also mentioned that she needed to focus on the children — they had school activities and homework.

As a wife and mother, Liza is practical and responsible. She also contributes a lot to the family finances. But at that time, I felt like she chose work over my family.

We argued for a few days.
As a compromise, Liza offered to give money every month to hire a babysitter in Batangas. In the end, I agreed, although it was hard. Every weekend, I would go home myself to look after Mom.

But every time I see tears in his eyes, it breaks my heart. I know he doesn’t want to be a burden, but I can feel that he also wants to be with his family. I can’t accept that when he needs me the most, I can’t bring him to me.

After weeks of sleepless nights and constant worry, I made a decision — I would bring Mom home, even though Liza was against it. I hired a helper for the day, and I would take care of her at night.

When I told Liza this, she was very angry.
She said I had no respect for her and did not consider the welfare of our family. The situation at home became heated. It got to the point where we hardly spoke to each other and the children were also affected.

Until one day, I received annulment papers from Liza. It felt like my world was falling apart.

In the midst of the confusion, Mom called me into the room. She was crying, and I could barely recognize her voice over the sobs:

“Son, take me back to Batangas. I don’t want to be the reason your family is broken. I don’t want my grandchildren to grow up with separated parents.”

It hurt to hear that. I could feel his love and sacrifice for me. But I knew he was right. So even though it was heavy on my chest, I brought him back to Batangas and continued to hire a full-time caregiver there.

When I returned to Quezon City, Liza was still cold. She didn’t immediately withdraw the annulment. The house was quiet, as if life had disappeared.

One night, I talked to her.
I apologized, I admitted my failure to listen and understand her. There she cried and poured out all the weight on her chest — the pressure of work, the guilt of not being able to do everything, and the fear of losing herself while trying to be the perfect wife, mother, and daughter-in-law.

We talked heart to heart until dawn. We agreed to work things out. He revoked the annulment and we made a plan: we would rent a small house in Batangas near Mom, hire a full-time helper, and every weekend, the whole family would come home to be with her.

On our first weekend together again in Batangas, I saw Mom’s smile as she watched her grandchildren play. That’s when I realized that true happiness is not just in fulfilling duties, but in understanding , sharing, and accepting each other.