Poor Mother Buys Old Stroller For Her New Baby And Finds A Hidden Envelope Inside
May 10, 2022
source: Go Healthy Moms
Many people aren’t dealt a very fair hand in life. And the same is certainly true for the young mother at the heart of this story. However, a little bit of kindness can go a long way and make all the difference in someone’s life. The following story is courtesy of AmoMama and goes a little something like this:
Kerry Donavan met her husband Tyler in foster care. The two had been orphaned at a young age, and they became each other’s whole life. They married straight after high school, and it looked as if they were on their way to a happy life together.
Five years later, Tyler had a good job with a construction company as a supervisor, and he had good health insurance and a reasonable salary, so they decided it was time to have a family.
To Kerry’s joy, she was soon pregnant and life seemed perfect to the happy couple until Tyler had a terrible accident at work. He fell from the third floor and hurt his back badly.
Kerry, who had given up her job as a secretary in her seventh month of pregnancy, was home when she received the phone call informing her that her husband was seriously injured.
She rushed over to the hospital, and her distress was such that she went into labor weeks before her due date. The happiest moment of her life was also the worst.
Hours after their little Leila was born, doctors told Kerry that Tyler would never walk again. When Tyler left the hospital six months later, he was in a wheelchair.
The insurance paid off some benefits, and Tyler received a disability pension, but money was tight, especially with a tiny baby in the family. Kerry decided to go back to work, and Tyler was determined that he would take care of the baby.
Kerry found a job at a busy diner and often had to work the night shifts. Fortunately, one of her colleagues, Ms. Higgs, became a good friend. Mrs. Higgs was in her early sixties and a smiling cheerful woman.
Mrs. Higgs often joined Kerry’s family for Sunday lunch in their home. One Sunday, Kerry confessed she was saving up for a stroller for Leila.
“I want to buy a stroller, but they are so expensive,” Kerry told Mrs. Higgs. “Hundreds of dollars!”
“Only if you buy it brand new!” said Mrs. Higgs. “One of my friends’ daughters bought a gorgeous stroller at the flea market for $50.”
“Really?” asked Kerry hopefully.
“Yes,” said Mrs. Higggs. “Strollers ARE expensive, and children only use them for a year or two, so people sell them. I tell you what, I’ll take you to the flea market next week!”
The next weekend, Kerry and Mrs. Higgs went to the flea market together and sure enough, there was a lovely old stroller! Mrs. Higgs inspected it carefully inside and out and declared herself content that it was in good condition.
Kerry paid for the stroller and wheeled it home happily. She proceeded to clean the stroller inside and out, but when she pulled out the seat cushions to wash them, she found an envelope underneath.
Intent on getting the stroller ready, Kerry set the envelope aside, and it would be three days before she remembered it again. Kerry was tidying her desk when she came across the envelope.
She turned it over and opened it. Inside was a single sheet of paper. It read, “If you’re reading this, you are probably a young mother just like I was, and I’m dead and buried. I hope that I can bring about some positive change into your life. Go to House 8 on Third Avenue and look under the oak.”
The next day, Kerry went to the address in the note and found an old abandoned house, and in the garden was a huge old oak tree with a white stone in its shadow.
Could there be buried treasure here? Kerry was a little embarrassed to believe it but was excited as a child on Christmas morning. The next day she was back with a shovel and started digging under the oak.
She dug that yard for days but found nothing. Kerry was ready to give up when she found a note in her locker: “You’re not supposed to dig. What you’re looking for is in plain sight under the oak.”
Kerry gasped. The mysterious note was in the same handwriting as the note in the stroller! That afternoon, she hurried back and took another look at the stone under the oak.
The closer she looked the more it seemed that it was concrete and not stone. Kerry picked up her shovel and gave the ‘stone’ a hard whack. It cracked but didn’t break, so Kerry hit it again and again.
At last, the ‘stone’ shattered. Inside was a small metal strongbox with a key in the lock. Inside the box, Kerry was delighted to find several thick wads of cash and what seemed to be a fortune in jewels.
On top of the treasure was yet another note: “My dear, life brought me love and wealth, but what I most wanted was a child. My husband and I tried to have a baby for many years, then finally God gave us a beautiful daughter.
“Sadly she wasn’t ours for long. Our beautiful girl died young and my husband didn’t survive her loss. She would have been your age and I hope she would have been just like you. Be happy my dear.”
Kerry hurried home to Tyler with a nagging suspicion at the back of her mind. There was only one person that could be their benefactor! Who else had had access to the stroller AND her locker?
But when she arrived at work, eager to confront her friend and express her gratitude, she discovered that Mrs. Higgs was gone. According to the diner’s manager, Mrs. Higgs had left suddenly, and she’d told him she was moving to a farm in Montana.
She’d left a forwarding address, and Kerry saw that the handwriting was identical to her benefactor’s! Kerry was now sure that Mrs. Higgs had slipped the note into the stroller and felt her heart break at losing her friend.
Kerry and Tyler sat down together and came up with a plan. With the money and the jewels, Kerry and Tyler bought themselves a lovely little home with an extra room and a special car that Tyler could drive, then they took a road trip to Montana.
Mrs. Higgs was stunned to see them drive up, but she was smiling when Kerry threw her arms around her. “It was you!” cried Kerry, hugging Mrs. Higgs, “It was you all along! Please, I don’t want to lose you, my darling Mrs. Higgs!”
Kerry and Tyler invited Mrs. Higgs to come back to the city and move in with them. “I love you, Mrs. Higgs, and once you were gone I realized how much. Won’t you come back with us?”
Kerry said, “I know I can’t take the place of your girl, but Tyler and I need a mom, and Leila needs a grandmother. We were hoping you’d take the job…”
Mrs. Higgs accepted with her eyes filled with tears. For the first time in many years, life promised to be an adventure, and she ended up sharing in the happiness she’d help to create.
What can we learn from this story?
- Kindness is sometimes done by a hidden hand. Mrs. Higgs wanted to help Kerry so she dreamed up a treasure hunt so she could keep her identity a secret.
- Being a family is about love, not biology. Kerry, Tyler, Leila, and Mrs. Higgs became a real family united by bonds of love and kindness.
A note from AmoMama: This account is inspired by our reader’s story but written by a professional writer. All names have been changed to protect identities and ensure privacy.
