All I wanted was to be a supportive, glamorous mother-of-the-groom at my son Mark’s wedding. But my effort to make everything perfect led to an unexpected and regretful conflict. Mark, a driven lawyer, introduced us to Alice, a carefree self-taught coder. They were different, but happy together. When Mark proposed,

he asked my husband and me to join in the surprise since Alice wasn’t close to her family. I offered to help with the wedding, using some of the money saved for Mark’s education.However, Alice and I quickly disagreed on wedding plans, from flowers to decorations. I decided to step back and let Alice take charge,

offering to just choose a dress color that wouldn’t clash with the bridesmaids. She promised no green dresses, so I picked one for myself. When Alice sent me photos of her wedding dress choices, I felt hurt she didn’t invite me to shopping. I suggested an alternative dress, but she picked the one she loved. I felt dismissed despite contributing to the wedding. As the wedding day approached, I found an emerald green dress that I felt great in. But when I arrived at the venue,

Alice’s expression changed as she saw me. Tears filled her eyes as she accused me of wearing her “dream dress” in green. I tried to explain, but she thought I was trying to make the day about me. Mark intervened, asking us to get through the day. I left feeling defeated, questioning if I had been too focused on my idea of the perfect wedding instead of letting Alice have her moment. In the end, I’m unsure if I was wrong, but it wasn’t my day to control.