Dear Anita,

I have decided to keep the green tea and not return it. I will pray for forgiveness and forgive myself. It seems too risky to put my emotional and financial well being at risk. I will have my therapist act as a third party to communicate with her on my behalf when it is necessary and get myself more help. I must get stable enough to cut her off.  Do you think this is reasonable?

To reply. My mom gave me a box of green tea for Christmas. She also had another box of the same tea she gave me on the table that she bought for herself for Christmas. I was in a hurry to get home after or Christmas celebration because it was getting late and packed up all the gifts she had given me. Unintentionally and without realizing it I put her box of tea along with the gifts she had given me. When I came home I realized I did accidentally take her green tea home. The next morning she called and was upset about it. I apologized to her and promised to return it. But a few days later we got into a fight and the stress of the fighting caused some of my health issues to flare up. My doctors advised me not to speak to her until further notice. I was hit with an unexpected expense this month and unable to mail it back to her at this time. I’m paying a lot of medical expenses and don’t have extra money to get it back to her. I don’t feel comfortable taking the bus to drop it off because I fear I’ll be verbally abused or harassed. I don’t know anyone to drop it off in my behalf. When I sign up in group therapy in 2 weeks I need my case worker to contact her on my behalf to inform her I cannot afford to send it back at this time. It doesn’t feel right to keep what is rightfully hers but at the same time I cannot sacrifice my own well being and make a financial sacrifice for her when I am paying for for medical expenses my health insurance does not cover and there are no charities or people willing to offer me any assistance. What would be the right thing to do?