Firstly I'd like to say that I'm sorry if this is in the wrong forum totally, I'm new here and didn't know where else to come for advice.
About eight years ago now my mum bought me a dark green ohana soprano I was very fond of, so naturally he went with me to europe. My mother carefully selected some buttons from her vintage collection and stuck them on in one corner: it was very cute. I built up quite the little collection over there which I am trying to get shipped back over but the little green guy... is going to be difficult.
I met a girl over there who, to cut a long story short, was abusive and manipulative to the nth degree. I lent her the uke during the course of our 'friendship' and unfortunately had to rush back to the UK at the end of March to help care for my cancer stricken mother. The girl in question had been informed that she was only borrowing the ukulele as he was very precious to me. When I finally found the courage to break away from her she informed me she'd moved all my stuff to her parents' house reading for shipping, because it 'hurt too much to look at it'. I thought it was all okay.
Two and a half months ago my mother lost her fight and I was simultaneously diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury, but what hurt the most was logging into facebook a week after her death to discover that two days after she'd died, the abusive girl in question had ripped the buttons from my uke, binned them and then painted crappy flowers all over him. The video of her painting it was clearly taken in her bedroom, so she had obviously not sent my things to her parents.
She also has some other stuff including my first violin, but it's the uke I'm heartbroken over. I come from a family on the wrong side of the poverty line and the little ohana represented months of saving on my mums' behalf, from her pension. He was more precious to me than I know how to express here in simple words.
I am at a loss for what to do now; I have no contact with the girl in question and do not want it as over the course of several months she changed everything about me and manipulated me into some horrible situations and I ended up badly hurt. I don't know whether I should go to a small claims court or the police proper for this, or even if the situation would work because she is, after all, in another country.
I have several pictures of the uke from when he was in my possession, and a posse of witnesses who can attest to him being mine. He's quite unusual so I do not believe that proving he was mine would be a problem, but I really don't want to give this abusive girl a window or doorway into my life now, which is finally starting to improve. I also don't know if I really want him back with her so called 'art' on him, as I worry that he will be less of a reminder of my mother and more of the abusive girl.
I have left it two and a half months because as I've said, my mother died and I had to organize her funeral and my brain injury has kept me quite sick. Now I feel ready to go after her, but I'm not sure how to go about it in a way that would keep her as far away as possible.
I was hoping someone here might have some advice, or has been in a similar situation before and can advise me to my next step.
Thank you all for your time,
Lash
About eight years ago now my mum bought me a dark green ohana soprano I was very fond of, so naturally he went with me to europe. My mother carefully selected some buttons from her vintage collection and stuck them on in one corner: it was very cute. I built up quite the little collection over there which I am trying to get shipped back over but the little green guy... is going to be difficult.
I met a girl over there who, to cut a long story short, was abusive and manipulative to the nth degree. I lent her the uke during the course of our 'friendship' and unfortunately had to rush back to the UK at the end of March to help care for my cancer stricken mother. The girl in question had been informed that she was only borrowing the ukulele as he was very precious to me. When I finally found the courage to break away from her she informed me she'd moved all my stuff to her parents' house reading for shipping, because it 'hurt too much to look at it'. I thought it was all okay.
Two and a half months ago my mother lost her fight and I was simultaneously diagnosed with a severe traumatic brain injury, but what hurt the most was logging into facebook a week after her death to discover that two days after she'd died, the abusive girl in question had ripped the buttons from my uke, binned them and then painted crappy flowers all over him. The video of her painting it was clearly taken in her bedroom, so she had obviously not sent my things to her parents.
She also has some other stuff including my first violin, but it's the uke I'm heartbroken over. I come from a family on the wrong side of the poverty line and the little ohana represented months of saving on my mums' behalf, from her pension. He was more precious to me than I know how to express here in simple words.
I am at a loss for what to do now; I have no contact with the girl in question and do not want it as over the course of several months she changed everything about me and manipulated me into some horrible situations and I ended up badly hurt. I don't know whether I should go to a small claims court or the police proper for this, or even if the situation would work because she is, after all, in another country.
I have several pictures of the uke from when he was in my possession, and a posse of witnesses who can attest to him being mine. He's quite unusual so I do not believe that proving he was mine would be a problem, but I really don't want to give this abusive girl a window or doorway into my life now, which is finally starting to improve. I also don't know if I really want him back with her so called 'art' on him, as I worry that he will be less of a reminder of my mother and more of the abusive girl.
I have left it two and a half months because as I've said, my mother died and I had to organize her funeral and my brain injury has kept me quite sick. Now I feel ready to go after her, but I'm not sure how to go about it in a way that would keep her as far away as possible.
I was hoping someone here might have some advice, or has been in a similar situation before and can advise me to my next step.
Thank you all for your time,
Lash