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Receipt from Japanese kid’s first shopping trip is a heart-melting symbol of his love for his mom

Casey Baseel Jun 27, 2022
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Seven-year-old boy proves he’s not just old enough, but kind enough too.

Usually when a photo is trending on Twitter, it’s some sort of attention-grabbing visual, like a roadside Totoro sighting or a major international celebrity hanging out with some anime horse girls. By comparison, a photo shared by Japanese mother and Twitter user @monamick30 is decidedly low-key, as it’s just a photo of a grocery store receipt.

Except, really, it’s not just a receipt, but also a heartwarming reminder of the love she and her son have for each other.

In Japan, there’s a cultural tradition called otsukai, which comes from the word tsukau. Ordinarily tsukau means “use,” and so otsukai refers to an errand that one person goes out and does for someone else, with the most common example being parents sending their kids out to pick up some items at the local store (incidentally the series Netflix calls Old Enough is titled Hajimete no Otsukai, or “First Otsukai,” in Japanese).

The receipt that @monamick30 tweeted a photo of is from the first ostukai shopping trip she sent her son on, when he was just seven years old. Since seven-year-olds don’t have cash of their own, along with the shopping list, @monamick30 gave her son a 1,000-yen bill, and as a reward said that he could use any money left over to buy himself some treats. Displaying some impressive math skills for a kid his age, here’s what @monamick30’s son had in his shopping basket when he went up to the register, and the price of each item.

● Korean-style flavored dried seaweed: 108 yen
● Coolish-brand ice cream: 89 yen
● Wilkinson sparkling water: 75 yen
● Bonito sashimi: 350 yen
● Dried squid: 378 yen

All together, that comes out to exactly 1,000 yen. However, there was one problem. @monamick30’s son hadn’t accounted for sales tax, and once it was added in, his total came to more than he could afford.

The only solution was to put something back, but what? Remember, some of the items were things his mom had specifically asked him to buy, so those weren’t candidates to be cut. Both the ice cream and the sparkling water, though, were things the boy had been planning to buy with the leftover money he’d been given permission to use however he wanted, so the choice came down to one of those.

Ice cream versus sparkling water? Keeping the ice cream is an easy call for a seven-year-old, right?

Except…

▼ “Coolish [returned]: -89 yen”

Yep, @monamick30’s son put the sweet ice cream back in order to still have room in his 1,000-yen budget for the sparkling water. The reason why isn’t because he had a mature palate, though, but because he had a precocious concept of kindness. See, while he’d been wanted the ice cream for himself, he wanted to buy the sparkling water as a surprise present for his mom, since it’s one of @monamick30’s favorite beverages.

これ、普通のレシートじゃない。息子が7歳の時に1人で初めてのおつかい。渡された1000円ぴったりになるように“ 足し算 “しながら選んでレジ前。消費税がかかり1080円に。再計算、炭酸水75円を返品すれば、税込999円。でもママが好きな炭酸水。自分が欲しいアイス89円を返品…想像しただけで泣けるの。 pic.twitter.com/JvovWC7RYG

— 残業キライ子ちゃん̤̫ (@monamick30) June 7, 2022

▼ The results of the boy’s shopping trip

息子が7歳の時。初めてのおつかい。渡された1000円ぴったりなるように“ 足し算 “しながら選んで、レジ前。消費税がかかり1080円に。店員さんに相談し再計算、炭酸水75円を返品すれば、税込999円。でもママが好きな炭酸水。自分が欲しいアイス89円を返品したの。レジ前で考え悩む息子を想像…マジ泣くっ pic.twitter.com/ytpQpK2vpT

— 残業キライ子ちゃん̤̫ (@monamick30) January 15, 2022

“It brings tears to my eyes just imagining him at the store,” says @monamick30, and other commenters also found themselves getting choked up.

“This is making me cry too.”
“That must have been the best-tasting sparkling water ever.”
“You raised him right.”
“So much love for his mom.”
“I’d hang on to that receipt forever.”

While it may not quite qualify as “forever” quite yet, @monamick30 has kept the receipt for six years so far. That would make her son 13 years old now, meaning she’s still got several years until he’s all grown up, but it looks like he’s already well on his way to becoming a kind and considerate adult.

Source: Twitter/@monamick30 via IT Media
Top image: Pakutaso
Insert images: Twitter/@monamick30
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