To be annoyed about her collecting the stones?

7 posts a year. Not a well known Group then 😂

We have done both - taken or hide

But we have also did our own to replace if taken /took - grammar police 😂

There is a more common group. Can't R.E.M. what but we found a few during lockdown 4yrs ago and my dd then 3 loved finding and hiding and then took a pic of stone and put it on the Facebook group so the painter knew it had been found

Annoyingly, it should say, "If you're lucky enough..."

I really dislike the concept of painted rocks being hidden in natural areas. I don't mind in urban areas though.
I think your SM is fine. She is enjoying them. The OPs outrage is a bit OTT

These were displayed for a church service and then put on the graves of our local heroes

I’ve never come across this stone hiding thing. It might get irritating if it takes over the world.
Impossible looking stacks of rocks on mountains seemed like a novelty at first. I soon began to find them so annoying I kicked a few of them over.

Morgan Rocks! Is a group of Morgana Army followers who are seeking to raise awareness of childhood cancers through hiding beautiful stones for others to find across the U.K. and beyond!

Decorate your own stone and add the words 'Morgan's Army! or our hashtag #MorgsArmy and help spread our message far and wide!

........

That's a Facebook page called Morgan Rocks. The website - morgansarmy.co.uk/morgans-rocks/

These were displayed for a church service and then put on the graves of our local heroes

I'm with @TheCoffeeNebula on this one: People can't just make up rules and then be offended that other people don't follow them. SIL didn't agree with the rules of the game or to play the game at all

I absolutely hate it when other people decide that because I have done one thing I am honour bound to do another specific thing. Just because in their head it is "First A then follows B" it doesn't mean that it is obvious for other people. Especially, when you then think "Oh, that was why he was so eager for me to do that/ go there. He knew I didn't want to do B and now he thinks that he can make me".

My DH and I once found an old lady with Alzheimer's who had wandered off from her nursing home and escorted her home. The staff then expected us to start visiting her. We were both studying really heavy subjects and didn't have time to see our own families! But in their heads because we had voluntarily given a bit more than an hour once we were now honour bound to continue to donate our time.

These ones travelled from Washington USA

You buy them from building merchants normally
So they are big

I wonder if there is one poor rock painter who keeps putting them in the same place and your SM just ambles along and takes them all 😂

Thats just her local one

Alot of places have local ones
Then there is one main national one called ‘Love on the rocks’ which has over 150K members

Aghast lol
You sound utterly insufferable your poor step mother

I like the sound of your artist friend, @MolkosTeenageAngst. Someone placed a few 'fairy houses' around my town, and then it stopped. Perhaps there's a travelling crafter distributing them around the country!

I can understand the enthusiasm for stone-painting, though I've never found one myself. I don't like them; stones are supposed to look like stones, imo. They probably make a cheerful display on your SM's step, leave her be!

“aghast” lol

Never heard of this or ever seen a stone, and am in my 50s. It’s amazing and quite nice, the number of hobbies and communities there are in the world that you’re unaware of!

It seems that the ethics of the game are keep or replace, so don’t think your SM can be criticised really.

As much as I like the sentiments around painting rocks and putting them around spaces I also don't like it. It feels like another unnecessary way in which humans alter the environment for their needs and not consider nature. Sure its not great for nature? But am an evil spoilsport so off before am pitchforked😘

@forestblade The keep or hide is a beautiful sentiment and respects freedom of choice. Please don’t ruin it with judging others harshly for choosing to keep. Anyone who visits her will
see these painted rocks and perhaps share in the joy.

That's awful. I can't imagine the person who did that thought it was part of the game. They were just a horrible person. Your poor niece

Our local group also says keep or reside- there were a couple in our front garden when we moved in that I assume the kids of the previous owners had found, and my daughter has found and kept one too. I think if you have loads it’s probably nice to leave some for other people but you’re really overreacting here

In barmouth we saw someone selling ones that had been hidden in the town, in their shop!

That is appalling. Under a hedgerow or behind the swings in the park is fair game; but you don't desecrate somebody's grave - ever.

I suppose, if you're supposed to re-hide them, then doing so outside on your doorstep is technically adhering to this.

Also, where did they get the stones from in the first place? Assuming they just found them and helped themselves, nature purists might consider artificially painting them as 'spoiling' them - so they could also be seen to have done a bad, anti-social thing, depending on your viewpoint.

Who cares?

Step-Mother, presumably.