There’s nothing worse than being put in an awkward situation where doing the right thing feels anything but fair.

So, what would you do if your neighbor said your teenage son was making their daughters uncomfortable just by being in his own yard?

Would you stand firm on his right to enjoy his own space?

Or would you ask him to stay inside to avoid conflict?

In the following story, a father is faced with this exact dilemma.

Here’s what happened.

AITA for telling my son he shouldn’t go out in our yard anymore, since he’s making our neighbors daughters uncomfortable?

My son is 13 but looks quite a bit older.

Both my wife and I are tall, but he’s set to pass me since he’s 5’10” and well-built.

He’s a great kid, and I’ve never suspected him of saying or doing anything bad.

We have a big yard and garden, and he’ll go out there a lot to read or just mess around.

Now, our neighbor’s yard is about 100 feet away, and there is this little patch of trees between us, but we don’t have fences, so you can see into each other’s yards.

We don’t really talk or know each other, but he’s got two daughters who are a bit younger than my son.

Here’s where the whole problem started.

The other week, the neighbor came and said my son was making his daughters uncomfortable.

I asked if he did anything, and he said no, not like that; it’s just he sort of intimidates them hanging around the yard.

I talked with my son and he confirmed he never even looks in that direction, he never talks to them or even heard or saw them being uncomfortable.

So, I had a talk with my son earlier than I expected.

I told him that sometimes, people are going to be uncomfortable around him.

That isn’t his fault or their fault, we just need to respect other people, and make sure we aren’t imposing ourselves on others.

The wife disagreed with how he handled the situation.

I went on to explain that I get it; I’m a big guy.

I have to cross the street all the time because women will speed up when they see me, which I completely understand.

I even try to stay in more to avoid that.

So I told my son that I’m not mad, but he probably shouldn’t linger out in the yard alone anymore. He was upset but understood.

My wife is furious, she says I should’ve talked to her first (and she’s right on that front) and that our son hasn’t done anything.

I get that, but still, I don’t think he should be in the yard if he’s making other people uncomfortable.

AITA?

Wow! This sounds like a messy situation.

Let’s see how the folks over at Reddit weigh in on this topic.

Exactly, his son deserves to be in his own yard.

Here’s a great idea.

As this person suggests, maybe it would be a good idea to introduce him to the neighbors.

This is an excellent point.

He went about this all wrong.

First, he should’ve talked to his wife about this issue, and second, he should’ve stood up for his son to the neighbor.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.