I Fudged the Numbers on Mom's Birthday Card

So last weekend was my mom's birthday. You know how it goes, she's always saying I should visit more often, but life gets in the way and then before you know it another year has passed. This time, I finally made it over to her place with a card and some flowers. Inside the card, though, was where things got tricky. My wallet was pretty empty from some unexpected bills earlier this month, so I couldn't afford much of a cash gift. But when you look at your mom after all these years, that awkward feeling just wells up inside. So instead of telling her the truth about my finances, I did what most people probably do, I put down an amount that sounded nice but was far from accurate. I wrote fifty dollars on there and pretended everything was fine. The funny thing is, she didn't even notice at first. We were catching up over coffee when she casually mentioned the card but then got distracted by something else. By the time we both realized what had happened, it felt too late to backtrack, like I'd sealed my fate with that amount now forever burned into our anniversary. It's been eating away at me ever since. Part of me wants to come clean and laugh it off as a joke, but another part feels bad for making such a fuss over nothing. Maybe in the grand scheme of life, this isn't a big deal. But knowing my mom, she might think differently if I told her the real story behind that number. Now every time we talk on the phone, there's just a tiny bit of pressure when it comes up, like I'm waiting for her to finally ask me how much was really in the envelope. Sometimes I think about writing another card and leaving it somewhere she'll find it, but deep down I know that would only complicate things further. And so here I am, still trying to figure out if telling lies like this is ever okay or not. Maybe someday when we're both older, I'll have a better sense of how silly all of this seems now.