Ben and his mom were never close. She was the kind of person who wasn’t fond of showing her emotions, and Ben grew up feeling like he had to fight for her affection. However, his feelings about her changed after her passing, when a childhood photo revealed her emotional struggles.
When Ben’s mom passed away, he wasn’t greatly affected by the loss, because their relationship had always been strained.
She left him her Texas home, and Ben was determined to get rid of the place. He didn’t have any fond memories of the house, so he didn’t feel like he needed to keep it.
In fact, just a month after his mom’s funeral, he and his wife Cassandra traveled to Texas from New York to meet with some potential buyers.
While the real estate agent gave the couple a tour around the house, Cassandra was curious enough to explore it herself. Among Ben’s mom’s belongings, there was an old family album and Cassandra thought she needed to take it home so that her children see what their dad looked like as a child, so she tucked the album into her purse.
On their way home, Ben suggested stopping by at a nearby restaurant for lunch. Cassandra was first to get out of the car, forgetting her purse inside. As Ben took it, the album accidentally slipped out, and a single photo fell to the ground.
When Ben saw it, he realized it was a childhood photo of him and his mom.
But there was also another child on it that resembled Ben a lot. On the back of it, the words, “Ben and Ronnie, 1986,” were written.
It didn’t make sense. Ben didn’t know anyone named Ronnie. His mom had never mentioned that name, yet this little child looked exactly like him.
Shocked, he rushed into the restaurant and handed Cassandra the photo. “Look at this—who do you think this is?”
Cassandra stared at the photo for a moment before saying, “Ben, this boy could be your twin brother.”
Ben smiled nervously. “Of course not. That’s impossible.” But deep down, something told him that boy could really be his brother.
Determined to learn the truth, Ben went to the hospital where his mother had given birth to him. The files were considered confidential, but Ben was persistent. He found a way to access them.
It turned out his mom had given birth to twins, but one of the children, Ronnie, was born with brain anomalies that caused developmental delays and memory issues, so he was left in the hospital.
When Ben learned the name of the facility where his brother was, he immediately went to see him. Ronnie looked exactly like him. He was his long-lost twin brother Ben didn’t even know existed.
“Does he have any family?” Ben asked one of the nurses. But she told him to speak to Nurse Julie, who had been there the longest.
Nurse Julie recalled the story of Ben’s mom.
When she gave birth, she was a single mother who struggled to make ends meet. She could barely take care of one child, let alone two children, one of whom was with special needs. With a heavy heart, she made the decision to leave Ronnie behind.
But she did visit him a couple of times. One of those times, she took Ben with her too. It was the day that childhood photo was taken at the nearby lake.
Ben proved he was Ronnie’s brother and took him put of the facility. Ronnie was finally home, where he had always belonged.
The day he met Cassandra, Ronnie clapped his hands like a child. He could feel he was accepted and loved.
And Ben, he finally learned that his mom lived the burden of her choices her entire life.
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Bored Daddy
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