My mother-in-law smashed my 7-year-old daughter’s phone, claiming that because of it she had started doing badly at school: my daughter was crying and begging her not to break the gift from her late father, while all the relatives just stood there and watched in silence 

I had to teach my mother-in-law a lesson and explain to her that you cannot treat a child like that 

My story begins when my mother-in-law came to visit us. No one invited her, but as always, she decided she had the right to. Right from the doorway she inspected the apartment, pursed her lips in disapproval, and almost immediately headed toward my daughter’s room.

My daughter was sitting at the table with her notebooks. She is only seven years old. Not long ago, she lost her father, and since then her world seems to have been turned upside down. She became quieter, more withdrawn, slept worse, and of course school became more difficult. But instead of offering support, my mother-in-law decided to interrogate her.

— Bad grades again? — she said coldly, flipping through the notebook. — When are you finally going to start studying properly? Otherwise you’ll end up just like your father.

Those words hurt more than any shout. I saw my daughter’s lips tremble, saw her lower her head. To comfort herself at least a little, she picked up her phone — the very phone her father had given her shortly before his death. She turned on cartoons and pressed the phone to her chest, as if it were the last thread connecting her to her dad.

But my mother-in-law didn’t stop. She continued listing everything: the room was messy, homework not done, clothes dirty, no respect for elders. Then she suddenly stepped forward and tore the phone out of the child’s hands. My daughter jumped up, burst into tears, and begged:

— Please, don’t… it’s Dad’s gift…

The next second, my mother-in-law grabbed a hammer. I can still hear that sound — the dull blows against the pillow, the crack of glass, a child’s scream. My daughter was sobbing uncontrollably, covering her face with her hands. The relatives were standing nearby. No one intervened. They just watched.

My mother-in-law straightened up, looked at the shattered screen, and said coldly:

— This phone is to blame for everything. Now you’ll finally start studying properly.

And at that very moment I realized I could not stay silent any longer. If I didn’t protect my child then, it would be too late later. After what I did, my mother-in-law was left completely shocked.  Continuation in the first comment 

I walked up to my mother-in-law, silently took the phone out of the pocket of her coat, and smashed it against the wall with all my strength. The plastic cracked, and the phone fell to the floor.

The room fell silent.

I looked her straight in the eyes and, to everyone’s surprise, said:

— Your phone is harming you too. Because of the phone, you’ve become cruel. And if you ever hurt my child again, it won’t be the phone in that place — it will be your head.

Then I pointed to the door:

— Get out of my apartment.

The relatives looked at one another. Someone quietly whispered that I had done the right thing. No one tried to stop her. My mother-in-law walked out the door in silence. And she never came back to us again.