My mother thinks I'm still broke. I let her believe it.

My mother called me this morning to ask if I have money for transport to go see her in Surulere this weekend. I am 31 years old, I work for a US company, I live in VI. But she still thinks I am struggling because I don't tell her otherwise.

She sends me bank alerts for small amounts sometimes. Like N5,000 here, N10,000 there. Says she is helping me. I just reply with a simple thank you. If she knew I send 20% of my USD salary to her account every month through a third party, she would stop sleeping. She would worry. She would start asking questions about how I am spending my money. So I let her believe I am still the broke fresh graduate from UNILAG.

Sometimes I wonder if we ever really let our parents see the full picture of our lives. Or do we keep them in a version of reality where they can still feel useful?