We adopted Bobby, a mute five-year-old kid, hoping time and love would heal him. He broke our lives with five words on his sixth birthday: “My parents are alive.” Next, we learned unexpected truths. I always imagined motherhood would be easy. Life has other ideas. Bobby said more than his first sentence. It started a […]
At her husband’s funeral, Nancy encounters an old woman holding a baby, claiming it’s Nancy’s late husband’s child. Skeptical, Nancy leaves, only to find the baby in her car later. However, the mysterious woman has already disappeared. Nancy stood there, the chill of the autumn air barely registering. Her eyes were dry, the tears having […]
Soon after delivering the first baby, Leah’s pulse began dropping, and her condition gradually worsened. Pregnant, she’d been left on the street by her boyfriend, Joe. She ended up giving birth to triplets at the cost of her own life. The only person who cared for her was her brother, Dr. Thomas. He adopted her […]
After my husband’s death a year ago, I visit his grave on the 15th of each month, surrounded by memories and silence. Someone always arrived before me with beautiful flowers. Who could it be? I froze in tears when I learned. They think grief evolves but never disappears. After 35 years of marriage, I stood […]
Alice finds herself in an unexpected conflict when Jason’s estranged parents arrive and demand the house he left behind. Determined and grieving, she consents to take their claim into consideration—but only if they can provide an answer to the one question that plagued Jason right up until his dying days. For Jason and me, that […]
A third-grade teacher was having a tough time with a boy in her class. “Teacher, I should be in the fourth grade! I’m smarter than my sister, and she’s in fourth!” the boy insisted. The teacher, tired of arguing, took him to the principal. The principal decided to test him with a few fourth-grade questions. […]
We adopted Sam, a charming 3-year-old with ocean-blue eyes, after years of infertility. However, my husband rushed out and yelled, “We must return him!” as he proceeded to bathe Sam. Until I noticed the unique marking on Sam’s foot, his distress made no sense. I never thought that my marriage would fall apart when I […]