Family Holds Breath for Days Over Mum’s Spicy Message Teaser - Only for Her to Forget Entire Thing

Blake Curren | Investigative Journalist | Sutherland Shire Gazette

31 August 2025

A Gymea family has endured the emotional equivalent of a Netflix thriller, after their mother dropped a cryptic message bombshell mid-week on the family group chat and then promptly forgot what it was.

The saga began last Tuesday when “Mum” (who insists we don’t print her name, messaged the family group chat: “I HAVE to tell you all about what Aunty Janice said the other day - won’t share here, I’ll tell you Sunday.”

From that moment, family mood shifted into full suspense mode. Sibling conversations became strategy sessions, speculating wildly about what Janice could’ve said. Screenshots of the message were re-read like sacred texts. Some family members even reported waking in the night, gripped by anxious thoughts about whether it was scandal, inheritance, or just neighbour gossip.

Her two adult children report they have not felt this level of suspense since waiting to see if their HSC results. “I couldn’t focus at work,” said the eldest. “I’ve never looked forward to Dad’s birthday lunch more.”

But the highly anticipated revelation was dragged out over hours today. “She kept saying, ‘Oh, just let me baste the lamb first,’ or, ‘Hang on, I’ll put the potatoes on,’” the youngest recalled. “It was psychological torture.”

Finally, after dessert and one too many cuppas, the matriarch gathered the family close, leaned in with theatrical gravitas, and announced: “Now… what was it again?”

Sociologist Dr. Wendy Pratt from TAFE Gymea called this a textbook case of “maternal gossip amnesia.” “These are high-stakes, intergenerational cliffhangers,” Pratt explained. 

“The lost secret could’ve been life-altering, or just Janice slagging off the neighbour’s new decking. We’ll never know - and that’s the real trauma.”

The family group chat has since fallen silent, except for one resigned message from Dad: “Cake leftovers in fridge.”

Mums message teaser