Have you ever felt that something was really unfair? Listen to Ryan speaking to his friend Maggie about something he thinks was very unfair.
Ryan: It’s just not fair!
Maggie: Why? What’s the matter? What’s happened now?
Ryan: It’s my grandma again. She’s causing problems between me and my brother. I know she does it on purpose. She acts all innocent, but she knows what she’s doing.
Maggie: Oh dear. What’s she done now?
Ryan: Well, you know it was my birthday last week?
Maggie: Of course I do. I sent you that card with the funny dog picture, remember?
Ryan: Well, listen to this and then tell me what you think. My grandma gave my brother a thousand dollars for his birthday two months ago. When he opened his birthday card, there was a nice crisp thousand dollar note inside.
Maggie: Ooh...Very nice. I wish I had a grandma who was as generous as that. And you got the same for your birthday last week?
Ryan: No, I did not! That’s just it. My brother and I are the only two grandchildren she has and she should treat us equally. She shouldn’t do one thing for one of us and something different for the other. She should treat us both the same. But recently, with just little things, she’s started to favour my brother over me.
Maggie: That’s not fair.
Ryan: Exactly. Even my mum agrees.
Maggie: So, what did you get for your birthday?
Ryan: Well... She always posts our birthday cards, rather than give them to us personally. There was only a card in the envelope when I opened it. Nothing else.
Maggie: Uh-oh...
Ryan: The best is yet to come! When we picked her up to go to the restaurant for my birthday dinner, she gave me a parcel all wrapped up in nice fancy wrapping paper.
Maggie: Well, there you go, she probably bought you a gift with a thousand dollars.
Ryan: Wait til you hear the end. She asked me not to open it until we all sat down in the restaurant. I felt quite excited.
Maggie: I would have felt the same. So what was inside?
Ryan: Four pairs of socks and a t-shirt! Four pairs of socks. And a t-shirt!
Maggie: Nooo! Never!
Ryan: I swear!
Maggie: Did she give you some money later?
Ryan: Of course not! She wanted to cause trouble. You should have seen my mum and dad and brother’s faces! They were all scared stiff I was going to say something bad. But I kept my mouth shut and didn’t show my disappointment. I said thank you and got up and gave her a kiss.
Maggie: That was very polite of you!
Ryan: Oh, I wasn’t going to let her see what I was really thinking. When we got home my mum knew I was really upset. And my brother knew as well. They were both really nice about it. My brother said he’d share his birthday money with me. What do you think? Should I still say something or should I keep quiet? I know she's getting older, but don’t you think what my grandma did was really unfair?