– Such Honesty You Have, Mrs. Galina! What a Delight!

**Diary Entry A Lesson in Fairness**

*12th July*

What a fine sense of fairness you have, Margaret! I couldnt hold back any longer. So last summer, our kids roasted in that overgrown garden while we spent the entire year fixing up your cottage, and now Anastasias children get to enjoy all the comforts while ours stay at home? How very fair of you!

Yes, I said it was for the grandchildren, she replied coolly, but I never specified yours alone! Did you think I had no other grandchildren? Yours had their turnnow its theirs. Thats fair, isnt it?

Fair? That word twisted in my chest. Last year, wed hauled ourselves out there every weekend, clearing brambles, patching the roof, even installing a proper looall while Margaret sipped tea and nodded approvingly. And now? A dismissive, Bring yours next year.

Next year? I echoed, my voice tight. The cottage isnt going anywhere. Were family, arent we? Sometimes you help, sometimes Anastasia does. And lets not forgetits *my* cottage. Ill decide who uses it.

I let out a bitter laugh. Oh, Anastasias contribution was invaluablea single bag of sand for the sandpit. Truly heroic.

Margaret bristled. Fair means equal. Perhaps a month with yours, then hers?

A *month*? At my age? She clutched her chest dramatically. Id collapse! Two weeks, then?

Ive already promised Anastasia. She and Walter booked their holiday for Julythey want a child-free break. Its settled.

A pause. Then, grudgingly: Bring them next Wednesday. Till Friday. A few daysthats all I can manage.

A few days. After everything wed poured into that placenew windows, the swing set, even that inflatable pool the kids had begged for. A pittance. A slap in the face.

Right. Understood, I muttered, hanging up before I said something unforgivable.

I buried my face in my hands. What now? The boys had spent the year counting down to Grans holiday, dreaming of the treehouse, the pool, the adventures. And now? None of it was theirs.

—

It had started so innocently. Last summer, Edward and I visited Margarets cottagethe first time in a decade. The place was a wreck: peeling wallpaper, a sagging roof, a garden choked with weeds. The loo was still outside, the windows rattled, and the air smelled of damp.

So much to do, Margaret had sighed, stirring her tea. Id love to have the grandchildren, but what would they *do* here? Dig potatoes? Chase frogs? No comforts, no fun.

Id glanced around, remembering my own childhood summers at Nanascollecting eggs, weaving daisy chains, the thrill of spotting a hare in the field. Simple joys, but theyd stayed with me.

What if we fixed it up? Id blurted. Bit by bit. Make it a proper holiday spot for them.

Margarets eyes lit up. Exactly what I was thinking! Why waste money on Spain when we can invest in *our own*?

And so we had. New windows by autumn, a fresh coat of paint, second-hand bunk beds for the kids room. The boys stayed a week in August and came back sunburnt and chattering about hedgehogs and climbing trees. Can we go next year, Mum? *Promise*?

Margaret beamed. Now theyll have *proper* fun!

The next months bled money and time. We installed a shower, built a deck, even splurged on a swing set. The boys asked daily: Whens Grans cottage ready?

Meanwhile, Anastasia? Not a lifted finger. Just polite interest at family gatheringsuntil she needed sand for the pit.

—

Now, sitting in my mothers rented cabina modest place with an apple tree and a creaky porch swingI watched the boys cannonball into their own inflatable pool. Mum had offered to mind them while we worked, and for the first time in months, I breathed easy.

Edward nudged me. Cheaper than Margarets investment, eh?

I nodded. The cabin cost less than the new patio wed built. No strings, no favouritismjust us.

Later, as the boys slept, sun-kissed and exhausted, Mum sighed. Margaret played you. But youve made something better here.

She was right. The cottage had been a lesson: family shouldnt mean blind trust.

As the car rolled home, Edward chuckled. Let Anastasia fund her own kids fun next time.

I smiled. Fairness, indeed.