Love is the true bond for family, not biology. It’s often insulting for people to ask adopted children, “Who are your real parents?” More often than not, the answer is their real parents are their adopted parents. Not their biological parents, with whom they may have a distant or nonexistent relationship. When a young woman came to Zelda, claiming to be her daughter, Zelda took her in. They may not be biologically related but they became family. Until Zelda decided to tell her the truth. This story was inspired by a reader of AmoMama, where it was originally published.
“I’m your daughter”
Zelda didn’t know when she started feeling old. Maybe when her hair became more gray than brown. Or when her body began aching for seemingly no reason. Or when she realized she complained more than she smiled. Maybe it happened when she realized she had little to smile about anymore. Her husband, Cole, had died in a car accident before they had children. Zelda isolated herself in her grief. When she began to recover, she had few friends left.
Her days melded into each other as Zelda went through the motions of living. She felt detached from the people around her, especially the mothers who seemed to glow as they interacted with their children. It hurt Zelda that she would never know what that felt like. Until a young woman arrived on her doorstep.
“Hi, I’m Ella,” she said as if she had rehearsed this many times. “I’m your daughter. I’ve lived in foster homes but I really wanted to meet my real mother. But I understand if you don’t want to see me again.” Her eyes fell and her voice cracked; she was ready for rejection.
Zelda’s heart broke. She never had a baby, let alone gave up one. But for some reason, she couldn’t say that aloud. Ella could be the child she has always wanted, and perhaps, Zelda could be the mother Ella always wanted. On the spot, Zelda resolved to be. She smiled and said, “Ella, of course, I want to see you. I’ve always wanted to meet you.”
Becoming a Family
Ella looked shocked. She clearly was not expecting this answer. The two women went out for breakfast and Ella told Zelda all about her difficult experiences in foster care. She asked about her father and Zelda told her all about Cole. The two wished they had connected earlier and vowed to make up for lost time. Breakfast turned into a walk around the neighborhood and then a shopping trip. Ella was getting married, which had prompted her to find her biological mother. The two went shopping for accessories for Ella’s gown and found they had similar tastes. Then Ella asked Zelda to give her away and Zelda immediately agreed.
Zelda was more joyful on Ella’s wedding day than on her own. She was so proud of Ella and basked in all of the praise people lauded on her daughter. Zelda danced with the energy she thought she had lost decades ago.
Over the next several years, Zelda and Ella became close. They spent a lot of time together and every moment was blissful for Zelda, no matter how mundane. Every time Ella texted her for a recipe was a treasured memory. Then Ella gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, who she named Cole. Zelda cried hard that day, so touched by all of the love Ella gave her.
“I’m not your biological mother”
However, the guilt had caught up to her. She used to pacify it, saying Ella’s real biological mother had given her away while Zelda wanted to be part of her life. She strived to be the best mother Ella could ever have. But now, Ella named her baby after Cole, who was not really her father. All of this joy and pride, Zelda was stealing it from someone else.
Zelda knew she had to tell Ella the truth. She mentally said goodbye to Cole and her relationship with Ella. There was no way Ella would want anything to do with her after this. But she didn’t deserve to live a lie.
“Ella,” said Zelda. They were sitting alone in Ella’s kitchen after dinner with cups of tea. “Do you remember the day we met? When you came to my house?”
“Of course, I do,” said Ella. She laughed. “I was so anxious and upset, I thought I was losing my mind. But you made me feel better right away.”
Zelda took a deep breath. She said how much she loved Ella and how she would always be there for her, but there was something she had to confess.
“I had always wanted to be a mother. But I wasn’t the one who gave birth to you. I’m so sorry I had lied to you all this time.”
“You are my real mother”
Ella looked relieved. “Oh, I knew that. I knew that all along. The foster agency had given me the name Zelda Capones but there were two entries in the phone book. I went to the other one first. She admitted that she had given me up for adoption. She even looked a lot like me. But she was angry that I had come to find her. She said she never wanted to see me again.
“I was so distraught I didn’t know what to do, so I just followed the route I had planned from her house to your house. I was numb and in denial so I followed my original plan. Then I knocked on your door, expecting you to send me away but you didn’t. You actually wanted to see me. You may not be my biological mother but you are my real mother.”
This story was inspired by an original piece of fiction that first appeared on AmoMama. Any similarities between this story and actual people are purely coincidental.
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