Man Wants to Keep Peace Lilies After Grandmother's Death Despite Girlfriend's Concern It's Toxic to Her Cats

One detail of the bereaved man's story had Redditors advising him to change his mind

A man mourning a recent loss is frustrated with his girlfriend's focus during his difficult time.

One man explained to Reddit his emotional attachment to a plant his girlfriend was asking him to get rid of. The original poster (OP) explains he got the peace lilies after his grandmother's death.

"I decided to take them home, and come to find out they’re one of the most toxic to cats, so they’ve been on a 3 ft. stool in our room and the cats haven't touched it," he says.

OP's girlfriend is very concerned about the safety of the two cats and wants him to get rid of the dangerous plant.

"She’s asked me before if I would sell it, and I said no — it's non-negotiable. Then she asked if I would divide the plant in half and give the other half away to family members. My dilemma with this is that I live five hours away from family, and I don’t know how I would do that."

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Related: Watch Out! Summer Plants that Can Poison Your Pets

OP suggested that they hang the plant from their 9 ft. ceiling, but it would require he "constantly prune it."

"She calls me selfish and says I’m not listening to her. However, I think it’s hurtful to me that she wants me to get rid of a plant that has a lot of value to me," he said, asking for opinions.

While people sympathized with OP's loss, they noted that the plant didn't belong to his grandmother, which weakens his argument.

"I don’t understand the great attachment to this plant. It’s not like it was your grandmother's plant — it’s just a standard funeral flower plant. A month ago, it was at a florist or a grocery store. It doesn’t seem like a plant that is good for cat owners. It’s all risk by having it," one commenter wrote.

"It doesn’t really have a connection to your grandmother; it’s just a plant that someone bought because she died. You’re acting like this was your grandmother's plant and had some deep connection to her."

After people pointed out the difference, OP edited his post to concede he saw the point.

"Don’t think I don’t care about cats or living animals. I do. I lost my own cat a couple of months ago," he wrote. "I think it’s been more so the cloudy judgment around having my first major loss in my life. Never lost a grandparent before, or anybody else in my immediate family."

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