For thirteen years, I raised Abby with little trouble. She was the last child that I had taken in, and now, only Abby and Tyler remained in my household. As any mother can tell you, raising teenagers isn't the easiest of task. We had long since left our teenage years behind, and the generations between us served to widen the gap. Despite that, I tried my best to raise my two remaining children to the best of my ability, though neither child was mine by blood.
Tyler was a young man of nearly sixteen, with a gentle smile and always a kind word. He had been in my care since he was an infant, when his mother was declared unfit to raise a newborn. Only a couple years older, he and Abby were close friends, both learning to deal with the pain and challenges of the teen years, while still holding onto the child within that I had cared for since they were babies.
I never kept it a secret that I wasn't their real mother, believing that honesty would serve better than to let them slip onto the fact and resent me for hiding it from them. Tyler had accepted the fact, though I could tell that deep down a part of him wondered about his mother. I only kept one piece of information from him, and that was his mother's death. She had committed suicide on his thirteenth birthday. Abby on the other hand wanted to know all that she could about her mother, but I could tell her little. That always seemed to disappoint her, and after every time she approached the subject, she would lock herself in her room and cry over the mother she never had the heart to do. It broke my heart to see that baby girl hurting, but there was nothing I could do, other than try to find Grace, something I had been trying to do since that faithful night she left, abandoning the blue-eyed little girl. With no last name, no address, and no way to contact her, my chances of finding Grace was bleak, but I believed that God was guiding me on a mission to help reunite that little girl with her mother.
Abby truly was a good kid at heart, though the pain in her heart often lead her on paths that scared me. I spent many nights, on my knees, asking God to keep an eye on his daughter, in hopes of showing her that though she had been abandoned, she wasn't alone, she had myself, and she had a Father in Heaven who loved her enough to create her in His likeness. Yet, Abby had turned a blind eye to that. The small child in pigtails was now a young teen.Time and time again, she was caught sneaking out of the house at night, smoking, hanging with a rough crowd of children with no parental guidance, and even drinking a time or two. No matter how hard I tried to lead Abby on the right path, no matter how often I disciplined her, Abby's behavior wouldn't change. The affects of abandonment had worked their way into her mind and heart, poisoning her, as if the devil whispered in her ear. Twice, she had spent a week in the psych ward and the last time left her with a diagnosis of depression and obsessive defiance disorder. The medicine they prescribed her made her a bit more manageable, but didn't bring back the once bright smile that she had wore. The girl who had once been so happy and cheerful now cried herself to sleep over her mother.
I always tried to tell Abby that she was a special child, that I loved her just as I loved all my children, but she seemed to resent my attention, reminding me constantly that I was not her mother, something that hurt me, though I tried my best to hide it.
I was running low on ideas, when I decided to post an ad, with a picture of young Abby and her mother, in the local newspaper, hoping someone would have some sort of information on Grace. It was the only picture I had of mother and daughter, and was something Abby cherished, carrying it with her wherever she went. I knew it was a long shot, but I hoped and prayed that Grace, or someone who knew her would contact me, so that I could bring happiness and life back to Abby.
I prayed every night for God to send me a sign that I was going in the right direction, proof that my prayers were being heard. Little did I know that before long, my prayers would be answered, just not in the way that I expected. Life was becoming more of a battle, and the line was almost crossed the day I found Abby, wearing only her bra and underwear that I certainly didn't know she owned, making out with Tyler in his room. While they weren't related by blood, the idea of the two making out startled me, and I separated them, explaining that such a relationship wouldn't be permitted. Tyler took the news well enough, while Abby accused me of trying to ruin her life. The once shy girl was now wearing clothes that I wouldn't in a million years buy for her, and I had no idea how she had acquired the trashy clothing items that she wore to spite me. Yet, still I prayed for the young girl that I had raised, searching for that miracle that would be finding Grace.
Then, one November, I received a call at three in the morning. Half asleep, I answered only seconds before the answering machine picked up.
"Hello," I mumbled, wondering who would call at such a late hour.
"Hello," a woman's voice said on the other end of the line. It sounded familiar, and I did my best to try to place it.
"May I ask who is speaking," I asked, slowing starting to wake up. Years of raising children had made it so I could wake up with ease when needed.
"It's Grace. I wanted to...I know..." her voice choked up on the other end of the line. "How's Abby?" she asked, after composing herself a bit.
"Abby is fine," I reassured her, not wanting to worry her with the teens behavior lately. "How are you?"
"I'm ok," Grace said softly. "I've been...I haven't been able to stop thinking about Abby. Can...Can I see her?" I could hear Grace's tears through the telephone, and deep in my heart I knew that being reunited with her mother was the thing that Abby needed most.
Grace and I talked for hours.. She was married now, and wanted a second chance at being a mother, if Abby still wanted her. We planned a meeting, and when we had finally hung up it was 8 AM. In twenty-six hours Abby would meet the person who was missing from her life for so long. She would get her miracle, and once again become the daughter of Grace.
ns 15.158.61.48da2
