Um garoto de 10 anos chamado Jack se sentia péssimo porque sua mãe trabalhava sete dias por semana para pagar suas necessidades diárias. Ele decidiu resolver o problema com as próprias mãos, visitando o escritório de sua mãe e falando com o chefe dela na esperança de dar a ela uma chance.
Jack era um garoto de 10 anos que vivia com sua mãe solteira, Debra. Ele nunca conheceu seu pai, então sua mãe assumiu como mãe e pai para o jovem.
Debra trabalhava como faxineira sete dias por semana em uma grande empresa. Ela escolheu não ter nenhum dia de folga para ganhar mais dinheiro para as necessidades diárias de Jack.
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A mãe trabalhadora nunca demonstrou, mas trabalhar todos os dias da semana era exaustivo para ela. Limpar um prédio de vários andares não era tarefa fácil, e seu corpo doía por causa disso.
Um dia, Jack viu sua mãe sentada na varanda da frente, chorando. Ele a observou pela janela e a ouviu falando ao telefone com sua amiga. “Estou tão cansada, Emily”, Debra chorou. “Quero descansar, mas não consigo. Mal ganho o suficiente para cuidar de Jack e pagar as contas. Não posso me dar ao luxo de tirar nenhum dia de folga”, ela disse à amiga.
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Jack ficou triste porque sua mãe não conseguia descansar por causa dele. Ele se culpou e quis ajudá-la. No dia seguinte, depois da escola, ele foi até o escritório de sua mãe.
“Olá, Jack. Você está procurando sua mãe?” a recepcionista perguntou a ele assim que ele entrou no prédio. Jack rapidamente balançou a cabeça.
“Não, senhora. Por favor, não diga à minha mãe que estou aqui. Estou aqui para ver o chefe dela, o Sr. Jefferson”, Jack disse à mulher.
A mulher ficou surpresa ao ouvir isso; isso ficou evidente em seu rosto. No entanto, após a constante súplica de Jack, ela decidiu ligar para o Sr. Jefferson para informá-lo sobre sua visita inesperada.
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O Sr. Jefferson permitiu que a mulher levasse Jack ao seu escritório e, quando Jack chegou lá, de repente ficou nervoso.
“A que devo esse prazer, meu jovem?”, perguntou o Sr. Jefferson a Jack. Ele disse para ele se sentar no sofá em frente à sua mesa.
“Senhor, eu sou Jack. Minha mãe, Debra, trabalha aqui como faxineira”, Jack disse, limpando a garganta. “Eu vim aqui para perguntar se você poderia, por favor, dar alguns dias de folga remunerados para minha mãe. Ela se recusa a tirar um dia de folga, mesmo estando cansada, porque ela diz que precisa do dinheiro para cuidar de mim”, ele explicou.
O Sr. Jefferson ficou surpreso ao ouvir isso. “Sei o quanto sua mãe trabalha duro, Jack, e somos gratos pelo serviço dela. Estou surpreso ao ouvir que ela quer tirar um dia de folga, mas se recusa a fazê-lo. As coisas estão difíceis em casa?”
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Jack assentiu. “Somos só eu e minha mãe em casa. Sempre foi assim porque nunca conheci meu pai. Ao longo dos anos, minha mãe trabalhou duro para pagar nossas contas e cuidar de mim adequadamente. Eu a ouvi chorando no telefone ontem, reclamando de dores no corpo. Eu me sinto mal por isso, senhor”, Jack chorou.
Naquele momento, uma voz jovem falou de dentro da sala. Jack não percebeu antes que a filhinha do Sr. Jefferson estava lá. Ela tinha a idade de Jack.
“Pai, eu sei do que ele está falando. Você é igualzinho à mãe dele. Você está sempre no trabalho e quase não passa tempo comigo. Você raramente está em casa! Jack também deseja mais tempo com a mãe”, ela disse ao pai.
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O Sr. Jefferson percebeu que sua filha fazia muito sentido. Ele se sentia péssimo por estar dedicando todo seu tempo ao trabalho e, de alguma forma, negligenciando sua família no processo. Ele prometeu ajudar Jack e sua mãe antes de mandar Jack para casa pelo motorista do escritório.
No dia seguinte à visita surpresa de Jack, o Sr. Jefferson chamou Debra ao seu escritório. “Seu filho veio aqui ontem, e ele disse algumas coisas surpreendentes”, ele contou a Debra.
Debra olhou para ele nervosamente, curiosa sobre o que Jack poderia ter dito para merecer uma reunião com o CEO da empresa. “Não há outra maneira de dizer isso, mas você está demitida, Debra”, disse o Sr. Jefferson.
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O olhar no rosto de Debra caiu. Ela estava arrasada e começou a entrar em pânico. “Senhor, não! Eu não sei o que meu filho disse, mas ele é apenas um garoto. Sinto muito pelo que ele disse. Por favor, não me demita. Eu realmente preciso desse emprego!” ela implorou.
“Não seja boba, Debra”, ele respondeu. “Você é uma das pessoas mais trabalhadoras que já conheci! Não vou demiti-la sem motivo. Veja, ontem, seu filho me visitou enquanto minha filha de 10 anos estava aqui. Os dois me fizeram perceber algumas coisas.”
“Nossos filhos não serão jovens por muito tempo, e acho importante prestarmos atenção neles e darmos tempo a eles. Decidi levar minha família para férias, e quero que você e Jack venham conosco. Claro, as férias inteiras serão pagas integralmente”, revelou o Sr. Jefferson. “O que você diz?”
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Debra estava confusa. Ela tinha acabado de perder o emprego – ela não tinha condições de tirar férias. Ela se preocupava em não ter dinheiro entrando para as despesas diárias.
“Agradeço sua gentileza, senhor, e adoraria passar um tempo com meu filho também, mas não posso me dar ao luxo de não ter um emprego agora. Por favor, senhor, se você pudesse me dar uma chance, eu gostaria de manter meu emprego”, Debra implorou mais uma vez.
“Isso não será possível, Debra. Você não pertence ao mundo corporativo. Quero convidá-la para trabalhar para minha família. Você e Jack podem morar conosco. Temos uma casa de campo no nosso quintal que seria perfeita para vocês dois”, ofereceu o Sr. Jefferson.
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“Você só precisa trabalhar algumas horas por dia, e então pode se retirar para a casa de campo onde você e Jack podem passar mais tempo juntos. Você criou um jovem cavalheiro que realmente se importa com sua mãe – você deve valorizá-lo!”
Naquele momento, o Sr. Jefferson tirou um buquê de flores de debaixo da mesa. “Isto é do seu filho”, ele sorriu, entregando-o a Debra. “Vá para casa e tenha um ótimo dia com ele.”
Debra não conseguia acreditar na sua sorte. Pela primeira vez em anos, ela e Jack puderam tirar férias. Eles viajaram para as Bahamas com a família do Sr. Jefferson, com todas as despesas pagas. Quando retornaram, eles se mudaram para sua nova casa de campo, que ficava em uma propriedade luxuosa que eles costumavam ver apenas em revistas.
O que podemos aprender com essa história?
- Mesmo as pessoas mais trabalhadoras têm seus pontos de ruptura. Debra se recusou a tirar um dia de folga porque precisava trabalhar para pagar as contas. Ela chorou sobre sua exaustão, mas se esforçou no dia seguinte e ainda foi trabalhar de qualquer maneira. Prestar atenção aos nossos corpos é importante, pois não cuidar de nós mesmos pode levar a complicações mais caras.
- Nossos filhos merecem nosso amor e atenção tanto quanto nossos empregos. Debra e o Sr. Jefferson não podiam passar tempo com seus filhos por causa do trabalho. No final, ambos perceberam que a família deve sempre vir em primeiro lugar e que suas vidas não devem girar apenas em torno de seus empregos.
Compartilhe esta história com seus amigos. Pode alegrar o dia deles e inspirá-los.
After Our Mom’s Death, My Sister Claimed I Had No Right to Inheritance and Brought Out Old Documents—But in the End, She Deeply Regretted It
When Charlotte’s mother dies, her sister Barbara wastes no time trying to cut her out of the inheritance. Armed with an old document, Barbara smugly tries to throw a spanner in the works. But when the truth comes out, it’s Barbara who faces the ultimate betrayal, and by the time she realizes her mistake, it’s far too late.
I always thought family was unbreakable.
That no matter what, blood was blood, and at the end of the day, we would always have each other’s backs. That’s how family works, right?
A woman sitting on a bed | Source: Midjourney
But after my mother passed away, my sister Barbara came waltzing in and made me question everything I thought I knew.
And by the time the truth finally came out?
Barbara was the one begging for forgiveness.
My mother raised two daughters: myself, Charlotte, and my older sister, Barbara.
Two smiling women | Source: Midjourney
Naturally, Barbara was always the golden child. She was the one who got all the attention.
Barbara craved a roast chicken? My mother had one cooking away the moment her words left her lips. Barbara needed dry cleaning fetched? My mother would jump into her car and fetch it.
Barbara was also beautiful. Stunningly beautiful and never failed to make heads turn. She was blonde with piercing blue eyes, just like my mother.
Roast chicken and veggies on a tray | Source: Midjourney
Meanwhile, I was the odd one out. I had dark hair, dark eyes, and to be honest, I never really looked like either of them.
But I never questioned it. Why would I? I loved my mother.
No, I adored my mother with everything I had. She was my entire world.
A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney
So when she got sick, I was the one who put my life on hold to take care of her. I didn’t complain once. Not when bruises bloomed on my arms as she held onto me tightly when I took her to the bathroom. Not when she got frustrated and threw her food across the room. Not even when she would break down and cry for hours.
Barbara, on the other hand?
She was too busy chasing her dreams of becoming an actress.
“I can’t take care of Mom, Charlotte. I have auditions. I have producers to meet. I have to stay relevant and seen at events. You understand, right? Right, Lottie?”
An ill woman laying in bed | Source: Midjourney
And I did.
Because that’s what I always did. I was always understanding, while Barbara lived her life however she pleased. I tried not to focus on her and how I could have done with the help.
Instead, I let Barbara come in and out of the house, wearing her new clothes and showing off photos of her with actors and actresses that she had met.
A woman standing by a mirror | Source: Midjourney
“This is a glamorous life, Mom,” she said one day when Mom was too weak to get out of bed to eat her soup. “And you should really clean up your look, Lottie. You need to get noticed. Your posture is horrible because you sit hunched in front of that computer.”
“It’s my job, Barbara,” I said simply.
Life continued in that way for months. And finally, Mom passed away. But that was when Barbara came back.
A bowl of soup | Source: Midjourney
And she wasn’t grieving. Not at all. She was hungry, starving even.
For our mother’s money.
After the funeral, we met with Alistair, my mother’s lawyer. Barbara walked in like she owned the place, dressed in black but wearing diamond earrings I had never seen before.
I should have known something was off when she sat down with a smug smile.
A woman standing in a doorway | Source: Midjourney
The lawyer pulled out the official will, but before he could even read it, my sister pulled her first stunt. Barbara reached into her designer bag and pulled out a yellowed, folded piece of paper.
“Before you read that,” she said sweetly, “I have something interesting to share.”
She slid the paper across the table to me.
“Look what I found in Mom’s drawer when I was searching for her jewelry.”
A piece of paper on a table | Source: Midjourney
I unfolded it, and as soon as I read the words at the top, my stomach dropped.
ADOPTION DECREE.
Barbara leaned back with a smirk.
“Well, well, well,” she drawled. “Looks like I finally know why you always looked so different from us.”
My hands shook as I re-read the document.
A woman reading a piece of paper | Source: Midjourney
Once. Twice. Three times.
“You… you’re lying,” I gasped. “You made this up! You got one of your strange friends to make this!”
She let out a fake gasp, her long nails tapping against the desk.
“Oh, Charlotte,” she said. “Don’t be so dramatic. My friends have things to do with their lives. And anyway, it’s all right there. You’re adopted. Girl, you’re not even Mom’s real daughter. I always knew that your brown eyes and brown hair had no place in our family.”
A woman’s hand on a desk | Source: Midjourney
I felt sick. I felt the bile rise in my throat.
Had my mother hidden this from me my entire life? But why would she do that? Why not tell me the truth?
Would it have changed anything?
Not for me. I would have been more grateful for her.
Barbara crossed her arms.
An upset woman | Source: Midjourney
“So, despite Mom’s will saying that we split everything, you know, she kept saying that, I’ll be making sure that you get nothing. You don’t belong in this family, so why should you get anything?”
“Ladies, calm down. Let’s take a moment to think about this,” the lawyer said.
But I was too stunned to speak. Barbara’s words had cut me. Deep.
A smug woman | Source: Midjourney
And that’s when I saw it. There was one detail she had overlooked in her ploy. The name on the adoption paperwork had been erased. Someone had deliberately tried to remove it.
And that?
That made me suspicious.
“Please, Alistair,” she said. “You can do whatever comes next, but in terms of the estate, I want it all. I can wait until you sort out the paperwork.”
A lawyer sitting at his desk | Source: Midjourney
The lawyer sighed and nodded.
“But I think the two of you need to have a heart-to-heart before we meet again.”
Barbara scoffed.
“That’s not necessary.”
Barbara was so confident that she had won. But I wasn’t about to let her take everything without proof. I didn’t want to be horrible about it, but I had missed two promotions in the months that I had been looking after our mother.
A smug woman sitting in an office | Source: Midjourney
I needed to know that I had the safety net of her money. I just needed to have something to my name…
I decided to demand a DNA test.
“What’s the point, Charlotte?” she scoffed. “You know what it’ll say, Lottie. That you’re not family. I wonder where Mom found you. Do you think your birth mother misses you?”
I didn’t think anything other than the fact that our mother would be turning over in her grave at Barbara’s behavior.
A woman standing in a kitchen | Source: Midjourney
“Just do it,” I demanded. “Think of it this way. If I am really adopted and there’s proof, you’ll have more claim to everything.”
That did it. She moved her head slowly from side to side. Suddenly, she got off the couch, martini in hand, and looked at me.
“Fine. Let’s do it.”
But the results?
A frowning woman | Source: Midjourney
Oh my goodness. They shocked everyone. Because Barbara?
She was the one who wasn’t biologically related to our mother.
After the results came in, I went to my Aunt Helen, my mother’s younger sister. She had been tight-lipped about everything, but after I told her about the DNA results, she finally told me the truth.
“Your mother never wanted you both to know, Lottie,” Aunt Helen said, tears in her eyes. “Because she knew how much it would hurt you both.”
A sad older woman | Source: Midjourney
“Know what?” I asked, heart pounding, but I figured that it was about Barbara’s birth.
“Barbara wasn’t Mom’s biological daughter, Lottie.”
“So, you knew?”
Aunt Helen nodded.
“Your mother found Barbara at a train station when she was two years old. She was abandoned. My sister took her in, raised her as her own. And she never, ever wanted Barbara to feel anything less than loved. It helped that she had the same blonde hair and blue eyes.”
A little girl sitting on a bench | Source: Midjourney
“Okay,” I said slowly, trying to fit all the puzzle pieces together. “But how did Barbara have an adoption decree? If she was found at a train station, I mean?”
Aunt Helen sighed and glanced out the window as if she was gathering her thoughts.
“Because your mother made it official, darling. She went through the court system and legally adopted Barbara a year later. She wanted to make sure that no one could ever take her away.”
A mother and daughter duo in a court room | Source: Midjourney
My stomach twisted. I didn’t know how to feel. Or what to feel.
“So, Mom just didn’t tell her?”
Aunt Helen shook her head.
“She never told either of you, Lottie,” Aunt Helen said softly. “Because in her eyes, it didn’t matter. Barbara was her daughter, just like you were. Blood or not, she loved you both the same, and nothing was going to change that.”
An older woman sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney
But Barbara had never seen it that way.
She had spent her entire life being treated like the golden child, like she was the one who belonged.
And yet, in the end?
Barbara was the adopted one. I was our mother’s real daughter…
A woman sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney
The biological daughter.
When I told my sister the truth, she laughed at first. We were standing in the kitchen and I couldn’t wait to get it out. She needed to know the truth, too.
“You’re lying now, Charlotte,” she said. “You probably got someone to doctor the results, didn’t you? Or you hacked into the system! You’re the computer whiz…”
But when I showed her the DNA test and told her everything Aunt Helen had said?
Her face went pale.
An upset woman | Source: Midjourney
“No. No, this can’t be right. Mom loved me. She… she wouldn’t just take in some abandoned kid!”
But she did. She had.
“Barbara,” I said. “She loved you. And you being adopted doesn’t change that. Our mother was wonderful. She probably saw you and couldn’t wait to love you.”
Barbara looked at me. She was… I don’t know. I couldn’t read her face. I couldn’t understand what she was thinking. I had no idea.
A woman leaning against a kitchen counter | Source: Midjourney
She was blank.
As for my mom, she had given Barbara everything. She had seen a little child and wanted to take her home and love her, to make that child her own.
And instead of spreading that love and joy… what did Barbara do in return?
She had tried to steal my inheritance.
A child sitting on a bench | Source: Midjourney
She had tried to erase me from my own mother’s life.
And now?
She was the one who lost everything.
We went to see the lawyer again. Together, but in different cars. Barbara couldn’t even look at me.
Alistair had confirmed that my mother’s will was valid. Despite Barbara’s cruel attempt to cut me out, I still got half of everything.
A lawyer sitting at his desk | Source: Midjourney
“But… wait!” Barbara said, her fingernails digging into her thigh. “I don’t want to share…”
“Barbara,” Alistair said. “It’s clear. Your mother wanted the two of you to share everything. A straight 50-50. Now, if you want to play this biological daughter game, I don’t know what to tell you… Charlotte could take everything.”
My sister thought she could rewrite history, but legally? She couldn’t touch a thing.
The will was still clear. We were supposed to split everything.
A document on a desk | Source: Midjourney
But after her stunt? After trying to erase me from my own mother’s legacy? Barbara lost more than just her pride.
“Let’s go to court,” she said.
“I really don’t recommend that,” Alistair said.
“So, what?” Barbara blurted. “You just want us to split the money and then pretend that we’re family again? I don’t want anything to do with Charlotte. I want my money and my house. And then I want to be done with this!”
An upset woman | Source: Midjourney
“Barbara, come on…” I said.
“Just be quiet!” she bellowed, throwing one of Alistair’s pens onto the floor. “I don’t want you around. You’ll just be here to remind me that I’m not biologically our mother’s daughter. So, no. We’re doing this. And when I win, you’re going to get the hell out of my house.”
That was it. That did it. I didn’t want to be nice. I didn’t want to share. I didn’t want Barbara around any more than she wanted me around.
A pen on a carpet | Source: Midjourney
So?
I hired Alistair on the spot. For me this time, not on behalf of my mother’s deceased estate.
“Let’s do it,” I said. “Let’s go to court.”
“But I want Alistair!” Barbara said, standing up.
“Too late, sis,” I said.
Months later, Barbara fought it in court, desperate to take everything for herself. But she failed.
A woman standing with her arms folded | Source: Midjourney
In the end, the judge ruled against her.
And I got it all.
She tried to destroy me, and in doing so, she destroyed herself and her future.
And do you know what?
I think she deserved every single bit of it.
A woman sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney
What would you have done?
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