“A heartbroken young boy visits his mom’s grave and begs her to take him away. But then, something incredible happens. Kevin reached out and touched his mother’s headstone....CONTINUE READING
It was the first time he had been to the graveyard since the funeral, and the reality of his situation hit him like a ton of bricks. He collapsed to his knees with loud sobs escaping from his tiny body. The sound cut through the surrounding peace and quiet.
Miss you so much, Mom. Please take me away, I want to be with you,” he cried through flowing tears. He spoke to his mom’s headstone and told her all about his life at the orphanage, how there was nothing for him there. Kevin’s world had fallen apart at just 6 years old when his mother had tragically died. The days that followed were a blur as he was placed into the care of an orphanage. The identity of Kevin’s father wasn’t known, and no other family members had been willing to take him in, so an orphanage was the only option.
Kevin’s only bit of peace was in the dreams he had of being reunited with his much-loved mother. The other children in the orphanage were relentless in their dislike towards Kevin, tormenting him about the death of his mom and mocking him for crying. They made Kevin’s life even more miserable than it already was. He was one of the youngest children there, which made him an easy target for their jibes.
“‘You’re such a baby, Kevin, just grow up and face the truth, your mom is dead, and you’re never going to see her again,’” one of his roommates would scoff. This would set off even more tears from the grieving young boy. The taunts only got worse as he cried, with shouts of ‘Crybaby’ echoing around the room. As Kevin buried his head under his pillow trying to block out the world, when the other children weren’t mocking him to his face, he would often hear them whispering about him.
“‘No one will ever want to adopt Kevin, all he does is cry and hide away. Who’s going to want to take home a kid like that?’” Deep down, he knew they were right, but Kevin didn’t want another family to take him home. He wanted the one thing he’d never been able to have—to be back with his mom.
Kevin was torn; he hated life in the orphanage, but he also didn’t want to pretend someone else was his mom. It felt like he’d been forgetting his actual mother, and he could never do that to her. He would often fall asleep with memories of his mom running through his mind.
In these small moments of peace, he would remember her gentle laugh, her sparkling blue eyes, and the way she made the best peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with crusts cut off. He missed the little things, like her reading him a bedtime story and doing silly voices for all the characters, or the smell of her shampoo on her hair when she leaned in to hug him.
Although the memories were happy, Kevin would wake up each day feeling sadder and sadder as reality hit. One day, the orphanage took the children on a rare trip to a nearby park. It wasn’t often they all went out as one big group. There were so many of them and all different age ranges that it could be difficult to find group activities that would fit them all and that would not be too pricey.
Regardless of age, all kids in the orphanage loved the trip to the park. It was a chance to truly be a child again without the reminders that they didn’t have a family. While all the children ran for the swings and slides, Kevin hung back on the outskirts of the park. How could playing make him feel any better? The other kids hated him, and he had no interest in having fun anyway.
No one ever seemed to take much notice of Kevin, and today he used that to his advantage. Amongst the laughter and play, Kevin took the opportunity to escape. No one saw Kevin slip out of the park and run towards the city cemetery. There was only one place Kevin wanted to be, and it wasn’t in the park with a bunch of mean kids; he was going to go and see his mom.
Kevin stopped running once he reached the graveyard. He was confident no one had seen him leave the park, so he hadn’t been followed. The last thing he wanted was for one of the kids to see him at his mom’s grave; it would only make the cruel comments even worse. He didn’t want any of those bullies anywhere near his mom’s grave.
Weaving between the headstones, Kevin soon found his mother’s resting place and let out his desperate plea to be with her. Kevin curled up in front of his mother’s grave, his whole body shaking with the sobs that rattled through him. Just then, a gentle touch on his shoulder startled him. He hadn’t seen anyone else in the graveyard and hadn’t heard anyone approaching. His heart pounded in his chest. Had one of the kids from the orphanage followed him? Had they been watching as he cried over his mom’s grave, wishing to be with her?
He sat up slowly and wiped his tears so he could see. When he turned around, he was startled. Instead of one of the kids he’d been expecting, he found a woman he didn’t recognize. The sun was shining brightly behind her, and Kevin couldn’t help but think she looked like an angel, glowing in the light.
“Are you okay, dear?” she asked, with a look of concern on her face. She knelt down in front of Kevin. “Why don’t you tell me what’s wrong? I might be able to help,” she said, a look of sadness in her eyes but smiling sweetly at Kevin.
Unsure why, he felt a deep yearning to open up to the woman. There was something about her kind face and gentle voice that told Kevin that he could share his story with her. He turned to face the woman.
“No one can help me. I don’t have a mother anymore, and I miss her. I wish she’d take me away,” Kevin replied.
The woman looked down at the small boy with a look of surprise and empathy on her face. “I’m Susan,” the woman introduced herself, sitting down next to Kevin. “I’m here to see my son’s grave,” she confessed.
Susan asked Kevin where his dad was, and Kevin explained he lived in an orphanage. He told the kind woman all about how the other kids teased and mocked him for crying about his mom, which is why he’d run away from the park. He opened up about how he didn’t want to live in the orphanage, but he didn’t want another family either; no one could replace his mom. That’s why he’d come to her grave and begged to be with her, in the hopes that his prayers would be answered.
The woman sat and listened to Kevin. She was sure she’d never heard a story as upsetting as this one. When he’d finished, Susan explained that he would have to return to the orphanage, as he wouldn’t be safe otherwise. But she promised to walk him back. On the way, Susan explained that although the other children should try harder to be nice, they had it tough too. Living in an orphanage wasn’t easy for anyone, and they probably made the cruel comments to hide the fact that they actually felt the same way as he did.
Along the way, Susan spotted a small amusement park and asked Kevin if he would like to go on some rides. She explained that she used to bring her son Adam to the very same amusement park. Kevin jumped on the carousel, feeling happier and lighter than he had in a very long time. Just before they left, Susan bought the young boy an ice cream, and the pair walked back to the orphanage together, chatting and learning more about each other.
As they approached the front door of the orphanage, Susan stopped and knelt down in front of Kevin. She gently placed her hands on his shoulders and thanked him for sharing his story with her. She explained that even though Kevin couldn’t be with his mom, she was still looking out for him and would want him to be happy. Kevin nodded and thanked Susan for a lovely afternoon in the amusement park.
That night, Susan attended church, unable to get Kevin off her mind. She prayed that the sweet young boy would soon find the loving family that honored the memory of his mother and loved him unconditionally. An orphanage wasn’t a good place for any child, and Kevin was clearly struggling.
When she returned home, Susan went straight to bed, exhausted by today’s events. As she laid down to sleep, she had a peculiar dream. In the dream, her late son Adam handed her a note with the address 443 Washington Street and begged, ‘Mom, please take me with you.’
Susan was unsettled by the dream at first but didn’t give it too much thought. However, the strange dream reoccurred every night over the next week. Unable to dismiss the strange coincidence, Susan confided in her husband, Richard. She’d already told him about meeting Kevin and how she’d gone to church to pray for him to find a happy family. But now she shared details of her odd recurring dream.
“It’s so strange, Han. I keep dreaming about Adam giving me an address; he wants me to take him with me,” she shared. Richard told his wife that he believed their son was trying to give her a message and that perhaps it was related to Kevin. Deciding that he could be right, the pair agreed that they would try and find the address from Susan’s dream.
The next day, Richard and Susan set out in their car with 443 Washington Street programmed into their satnav. Sure enough, the address was in their city. As they got closer to the address, a look of recognition came across Susan’s face. She turned to Richard and explained she’d walked the same way with Kevin. To their astonishment, 443 Washington Street led them to the very orphanage where Susan had dropped off Kevin just a week earlier.
Susan looked out of the car window, and there sat in a large armchair that seemed to swallow him up was Kevin. He was staring out onto the street but seemed unaware of anything that was actually happening outside. He was lost in thought and had a glum look on his face; his red-rimmed eyes gave away that he was just as sad as when Susan had first met him.
Turning to her husband, Susan pointed to the little boy in the window, explaining that it was Kevin. Richard could immediately see why his wife had been so touched by the little boy, as he too felt a lingering sadness in the pit of his stomach when he looked at the small boy’s face.
The couple got out of the car and made their way into the orphanage, explaining to the staff who they were. One of the workers immediately recognized Susan from when she’d returned Kevin to the orphanage and asked if the couple would like to go and say hello to the boy.
As the couple entered the living room where Kevin was sitting, the young boy didn’t even look up, fearing that the other children had found him and had come to taunt him. But then he heard a familiar voice.
“What are you doing, sweetheart?” Susan asked, her voice tinged with both surprise and genuine concern.
“I’m praying that my mother will take me from here,” Kevin replied flatly.
Susan thought back to the prayers she’d said for the sad young boy. She remembered how she’d hoped that a family would come to the orphanage and take Kevin away. She thought back to the dream she’d had all week, to how her son had guided her to the orphanage.
At that moment, Susan and Richard exchanged a knowing glance. They had found the answer to Susan’s dream, and they knew what they wanted to do. If they adopted Kevin, they could be the family that Susan had prayed for. Firmly believing that their son wanted them to do this, they knew they would be able to fill Kevin’s life with the warmth and love he deserved.
Kevin was surprised that someone would want to adopt him at first. The cruel jibes of the other children in the orphanage ran out in his head. He had felt a special connection with Susan from the very first moment she gently tapped on his shoulder in the graveyard. But he had never imagined that Susan and Richard would want to welcome him into their family. He had been adamant he didn’t want another family, but something about this just felt right.
“God answered my prayers,” Kevin shared with them one evening during a family dinner.
Richard and Susan looked up at the boy in surprise. “My mom did take me away from the orphanage, and now I’m here with my family,” he beamed.
The sad look that haunted Kevin’s face had slowly started to lift in recent weeks since coming to his new home. His once red-rimmed eyes now began to shine with happiness, and he found himself laughing and smiling more.
Susan held his hand and smiled back. “God answered my prayers too, honey. Today, I met you in the graveyard. I went to church and prayed that you’d find a loving family that would care for you and embrace the memories of your mom. I didn’t know it at the time, but I’m glad that we ended up being your family. Thank you for giving us a chance, Kevin,” she whispered.
The newly formed family sat at the dinner table full of love and gratitude at the situation they all found themselves in, knowing that life had worked out exactly the way it was supposed to.”
This seems like a touching story about compassion, understanding, and the power of hope. It shows the importance of kindness, empathy, and the impact a single act of reaching out can have on someone’s life. It’s a reminder that family isn’t just about blood relations, but also about finding love, care, and understanding in unexpected places.
