🤝 The Gift of Context
Sometimes we buy things not for ourselves, but because someone’s part of the family — even if only by marriage.
It’s not about closeness.
It’s about context.
About recognising a connection while it exists.
That’s how I ended up buying a raffle ticket.
Not for me.
Not for someone I’m particularly close to.
But for someone who was married to someone else’s relative.
Because they were together. Because it felt right at the time.
🏠 The Prize and the Principle
It was a chance to win a house.
A big prize.
But the ticket wasn’t about the prize — it was about the relationship.
That’s the only reason it happened.
Then, before the draw even took place, they split.
Just like that — the connection gone, the context changed.
And I found myself wondering:
If he wins, what happens?
Does he remember why the ticket was bought?
Does he treat it like a free ride, or show up with some integrity?
📜 Timing, Property, and Emotional Ledgers
And here’s the kicker:
The ticket was bought while they were still together.
Which means — technically — it could’ve been considered relationship property.
But the draw happened after the breakup.
So if he’d won, it wouldn’t just be awkward — it might’ve been legally messy.
Funny how timing changes everything.
Funny how money changes the way people think.
🎁 Was It a Gift with Conditions?
Was it a gift with conditions?
Not at the time, no.
But a couple of weeks later — after the breakup, after the dust started to settle —
I realised I didn’t want him to win.
Not because I was bitter.
But because the context had changed, and the emotional ledger had shifted.
Suddenly, the ticket felt less like a gift and more like a test.
Of memory. Of character. Of whether people honour the spirit in which something was given.
👒 The Hat and the House
And it made me think:
Would I ask for the hat back — the one I gave him when things were good?
No. Of course not.
That was a simple gift, a gesture, something small and symbolic.
But a ticket with the potential to win a house?
That’s different.
That’s not just sentiment — that’s value.
And value changes the stakes.
It changes how we think about fairness, about ownership, about what was meant and what was assumed.
🧾 No Win, But Still a Reckoning
Well, the draw came and went.
And he didn’t win.
No house. No windfall. No drama.
And honestly?
I was kind of glad.
Because if he had won, things might’ve gotten very uncomfortable.
Not just emotionally — but legally, too.
But you know what?
The question still matters.
Because it wasn’t about the prize — it was about the principle.
About whether people honour the context that gave them access in the first place.
🎟️ The Ticket Was Simple. The Outcome Wasn’t.
Sometimes the ticket doesn’t win.
But the truth still deserves to be named.
And maybe next time?
I won’t buy a raffle ticket at all.
It seems like a simple gift —
but things can get complicated, unexpectedly.
You’re the star of your own story
