A man with a disabled daughter has had little luck finding love until something unusual happens and the whole village finds out.
He had no idea what to do when all his ex-girlfriends showed up at his house asking for a second chance.
We were excited but didn’t know what to do when my friend Lucia and I found out we were expecting a baby. Yet our beautiful daughter, Marla, was crippled by birth complications and other medical jargon that I never really understood. A friend of mine who also struggled with postpartum depression felt the effects of this.
After some time, Lucia moved out and left me to raise our little child alone. It’s nothing I regret at all. He is a trooper, smart, inquisitive, and the love of my life.
I am a proud father and Rosetta, my mother, is also in love with her. She looked after her every day when I went to work. Even though I wasn’t the richest man in the world, I was happy in our small town in Virginia.
My mother’s friends suggested afternoon tutoring for their niece Patricia because their daughter was bright and I wanted her to start learning. The arrangement worked for her because she needed some extra money as a teacher at a local kindergarten.
My eyebrows were on the verge of falling off. “What are you all doing here?” I asked them confused.
My mother and Marla thought she was amazing and my life seemed perfect. That is until I met Ella, who I instantly fell in love with.
When Lucia left, Thad didn’t think about dating.
I buried that part of me because the thought of the mother of my child leaving us hurt too much. But Ella caused a complete transformation.
She was amazing, cute, and very seductive.
When we started dating, we had incredible chemistry. She seemed eager to meet my daughter when I told her I had one. That was a great consolation. But it wasn’t meant to be.
One day we organized a family excursion to the zoo. There, Ella could spend time with Marla in a neutral and safe environment.
Something casual.
Ella’s eyes widened as I curled up with my daughter, so it seemed I should have told Ella that Marla was distracted that day. She faked a smile and played all day until she called me later.
“I’m sorry. Ella said, “I can’t. I was already hesitating if I should date a man with a daughter.’
“I’m not asking anything of you, Ella. A lot of people care about Marla. She’s amazing and you won’t be responsible for that.”
You’ll see,” I mumbled almost pleadingly.
“Not at all. I can’t. I’m sorry.” Ella tripped over her words and hung up. “Goodbye.”
And that was it. My life was without Ella. Of course, I was sad, but I didn’t want anyone to feel that way about Marla.
I haven’t fallen in love with a woman since Lucia left, until now. Both Patricia and my mother comforted me about the circumstances.
“You see, Ella made the right decision. She went about it the wrong way,” Patricia paused.
“Luckily, she left before Marla could bond, which prevented a lot of hostilities. Not everyone should or is able to raise children.”
“You’re right.
“You’ll find someone better soon. I’m sure of it! Patricia gave me hope with her assurance before she left late that afternoon.”
My mother said the same thing and for some reason, it gave me hope. I should never give up on dating; I’ve been alone too long.
But I never thought history would keep repeating itself. Oona was the first and she was amazing and amazingly beautiful. When I first told her, she seemed okay with me raising a disabled daughter. However, she always found a reason not to meet Marla when I tried to encourage her to. Work. Meeting with friends. Scheduled meeting. Name it. When I finally called her she said I was pushing her and that she was at her door.
That was the end of our relationship.
Then I dated Janette. Her leather clothing and no-nonsense demeanor gave her an edge.
I’ve been putting off letting her know about Marla for a long time. That was another mistake. She told me it was a deal breaker when she found out and said she would “never date a man with kids.”
Well, I felt it was reasonable because I wasn’t honest. But when Maureen, Kyra, and Vanna found out about Marla, they broke up with me and I was devastated. I have completely given up hope. I have already stopped going altogether. I knew it wasn’t just them. They could decide who to date and set boundaries, but it hurt that neither of them offered my daughter the slightest chance to win their hearts. Marla was so full of love.
Additionally, I felt like a failure because I couldn’t find a new mother or other parent figure for my daughter.
Yes, she had my mother and she respected Patricia very much. However, it was not the same. It wasn’t the same.
It was time to move on.
When Marla wanted a Snickers bar and soda from a nearby convenience store, I took her home one day after we visited the aquarium. After we entered and I made my purchase, my young daughter made an unusual suggestion.
She asked in a beautiful voice, “Can we buy a lottery ticket?”
“What?” I laughed. “Why?”
“Grandma and I are watching it on TV! I’d like to buy one. Hopefully, we can make it!” Marla said excitedly.
Even though my mother never bought a lottery ticket, I knew she was looking at them, so I shrugged and got Marle one at a time at the convenience store. I had no idea that the purchase would really change our way of life.
To see some parts of the lottery, we traveled to my mother’s house. Marla won $5 on some of the available scratch cards. My mother was eager to find out who would win the big pot, which was said to be worth around a million dollars.
When I got up to get a drink she was checking the numbers with my daughter as they were both crying loudly.
“We won! We won!”
I was making fun of them. “Sure, we win a million dollars!” I shook my head and laughed.
My mother said the last word seriously, “Andrew, we won!” I looked at her face for a long minute.
Weeks passed before I finally realized the truth. I believed the money would disappear even if I put it in the bank. And yet it was—almost a million bucks! I immediately decided to use it.
I started by adding ramps to our house, making it wheelchair-accessible and allowing Marla to move around the house independently. We followed it up with my mother’s residence. A good portion of our profits were also allocated to Marla’s education fund, which I didn’t put into as much as I would have liked, but which was now enough for her to study from anywhere, anytime. I also paid off all outstanding mortgage and medical debt.
After solving all the major problems, I bought the new car of my dreams. Even though it was a foolish purchase, I figured it would be okay to reward myself. I’m holding on to the remaining funds I’ve accumulated in hopes of finding opportunities to invest and grow them.
But I could never have predicted what would come next.
It’s amazing living in a small town until you realize that people can find out everything about you very quickly. After I got the car, word spread quickly, so one day I was surprised to see Ella at my door.
“Andrew! It’s great to have you here.” She welcomed me as if she hadn’t broken my heart and disappeared from my life.
However, before I could ask her about her actions, I noticed two cars approaching my neighborhood. Oona came out of one of them.
She frowned at Ella. But suddenly I noticed that Jannette was getting out of the other car. I could have easily lost my eyebrows.
“What are you all doing here?” I asked them confused.
Oona was the first to answer, “I wanted to talk to you.”
Jannette and Ella agreed and said, “Me too.”
I figured things might get even weirder when Vanna, Maureen, and Kyra arrive.
“Am I getting punched? What on earth is going on?” I asked, shocked at the circumstances. With deep frowns and confusion, the women exchanged glances, but neither of them spoke.
Fortunately, I also noticed my mother’s car coming. She brought Marla and Patricia happened to be around as well.
My daughter’s teacher got out, helped her mother into a chair, and followed her with wide eyes.
When my daughter’s wheelchair was brought in, the mother fixed her gaze on each woman. There was something in her eyes that I couldn’t quite place. As if she were testing them in some way. She was talking to Patricia when she stopped at my front door. “Honey, Pattinson. Close the door behind you and take Marla inside.”
“I’m not sure what they’re doing here Mom.
“I’m still trying to figure out why everyone showed up,” I said, shaking my head and looking at the girls.
“Oh, Andrew. I love you, but men are stupid sometimes,” she continued, patting me condescendingly on the shoulder. “Women. You owe yourself an apology.”
They all shuffled their feet and bowed their heads. Ella replied, “I just wanted to talk to Andrew because we had such a bad breakup.”
“Are you serious? That fits,” Mother commented cynically. “Now that you’re all here, I see why. Stop! Oh, you harpies, now! You want to give my son and my granddaughter a chance because you know his wealth, am I right?”
I didn’t know this was happening. As my mother used to say I thought he was crazy but when I turned to face the ladies I was dating I realized he was telling the truth. I pursed my lips and nodded.
“Go,” I said quietly. “I don’t want to talk to any of you at all. Now go.”
When a few of them tried to object, my mother silenced them by threatening to call the police.
Everyone slowly moved away.
I walked in and started laughing my heart out. He was half relieved, half confused. Now I had some money so I couldn’t believe the women showed up. My mom laughed too and Patricia and Marla soon followed. My daughter was obviously excited, even though she didn’t really understand what was going on.
She was happy with the people in the room and that we were having fun together. I asked Patricia to join me on the back porch while Mother went to bed. We discussed the circumstances and laughed at the audacity of some people.
When Marla went to sleep, her mother left and I expressed my gratitude to her for everything.
However, Patricia stayed for a while that evening and I realized that the person I was looking for was standing right in front of me.
She already loved me, my mother, and my daughter. I couldn’t see her like this because I was too broken and tired of dating. However, I did it that evening.
A few weeks later I asked her out and two years later we were married. When my youngest daughter was twelve, Patricia adopted Marla and we had two other children who respected their older sisters very much.
Sometimes the greatest things in life are right in front of you. You just have to open your eyes to see.
What lessons can we learn from this story?
You should be relieved that some people aren’t in your life because they aren’t worth your time. The women Andrew chose didn’t deserve to be in his life – they left him after they found out about Marla. He finally realized that he had escaped serious injury.
Check out the amazing people who are already supporting and helping you. Andrew was unaware that Patricia was the one for him until his ex-girlfriends visited him about his newfound wealth.
Discuss this story with your companions. It could motivate them and make their day.
This story about a mother who sends her crippled child to an orphanage because her new husband told her to, will make you wonder if you liked the last one.
This essay was prepared by a professional writer and motivated by anecdotes from the daily lives of our readers. Any resemblance to actual names or places is purely coincidental. All images are illustrative only. Tell us your story and maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to send your story to [email protected] that would be great.
Andrew’s story reveals profound lessons about resilience, self-respect, and the value of real relationships. Despite grief and rejection from several women who could not accept his daughter Marla’s disability, Andrew’s journey took an unexpected turn when he discovered a significant lottery win. This windfall allowed him to make meaningful improvements to his life and Marla’s life but also prompted the return of his former partners, who were motivated by his newfound wealth.
Meeting his ex-girlfriends gave Andrew a moment of clarity. It turned out that these individuals weren’t really invested in him or his daughter; their true intentions were revealed when they tried to rekindle their relationship solely for his financial success. Andrew’s mother, with her keen intuition, recognized the insincerity of these women and stood up to protect her family and eventually drive them away.
Amidst the chaos and unexpected visitors, Patricia, who was present throughout, emerged as a beacon of true community. She was there for Andrew and Marla from the beginning, appreciating them for who they were rather than their material gains. Thanks to Patricia’s unwavering support and eventual determination, Andrew found the true love and acceptance he was looking for.
This story underscores the importance of recognizing and appreciating those who stand by you during difficult times. It also highlights the need to be careful about who you let into your life and make sure their intentions are aligned with your values and the well-being of your loved ones. Ultimately, Andrew’s journey shows that true love and happiness often come from the most unexpected places, and the people who really matter are those who are already there, rather than those who arrive only when circumstances change.