A 9-year-old girl is in tears after being mocked by her classmates for being adopted. When the girl’s adoptive mother finds out, she decides to contact the girl’s biological mother.
“Don’t worry, Mr. and Mrs. Jones. We’ll make sure Kathy doesn’t feel left out. You can rest assured about that,” Kathy’s class teacher, Mrs. Smith, reassured Kathy’s parents, Sarah and Mike.
Sarah and Mike had relocated from the English suburbs to Denver, Colorado after Mike was transferred to his company’s Colorado branch. Since Kathy was scared to go to class alone, they decided to accompany their little daughter to school.
Kathy was mocked for being adopted | Photo: Shutterstock
Kathy was nervously holding Sarah and Mike’s hands, fearful that the story from her previous school would be repeated and her classmates would judge her again.
Kathy was a stark contrast to her white parents, with dark skin and curly brown hair. Growing up in the suburbs, the little girl was aware that she was different from her parents, but she didn’t consider herself “adopted” until other students at her school pointed it out and made fun of her because of it.
Unfortunately for Kathy, she was afraid that history would repeat itself, which is precisely what happened.
“Please join me in welcoming Kathy Jones. She’s a new student, and she’ll be joining you guys today,” Mrs. Smith said as Kathy entered the classroom.
Kathy tried to smile at everyone, but she could feel the strange eyes’ judgment as they moved from her face to her toes, then to her parents, and then to their classmates, who exchanged smiles – not in a positive way – and the occasional whisper to their friends seated beside them.
Kathy was upset after she heard her classmates mocking her | Photo: Pexels
“Kathy, why don’t you take a seat and join your classmates?” Mrs. Smith suggested to her with a friendly smile.
Little Kathy looked at her parents, afraid to leave them, but her mother smiled and knelt beside her, assuring her that everything would be fine, and giving her the confidence to finally let go of their hands and take a seat.
However, as she took a few steps forward and a seat in the second row, she heard whispers behind her, which were nothing but skittish.
“Do you see how different she looks from her mom and dad? I don’t think they are her real parents,” Isabelle whispered to her friend Anne.
“Obviously, she looks nothing like her parents! I’m sure they adopted her!” Anne sneered. “But does that little black sheep know about it?”
Kathy’s eyes welled up as she heard her classmates mock her, but she didn’t say anything. She hid her tears and smiled at her mom and dad, who waved her goodbye and left the class.
But unfortunately, her classmates just crossed the line one day. Poor Kathy had just taken her seat when Isabelle, Anne, and a few of her other friends gathered around her and began bullying her.
Anne and her friends mocked Kathy | Photo: Pexels
“So when are you leaving this school? Don’t tell me you’re continuing here!” Anne yelled at her as she grabbed Kathy’s bag and tossed it into a corner.
“But why…? I didn’t do anything wrong…” the little girl said in a trembling voice, terrified at how everyone had surrounded her.
“Because we don’t like you and we don’t want to see you here! I’m sure your mom left you because she didn’t like you either!” Isabelle added.
“My mom didn’t leave me!” Kathy spoke up, wiping her tears. “My mom loves me a lot. She loves me more than anything!”
Isabelle laughed. “Well, they are not even your real parents! They must have adopted you because they felt sorry for you. That’s why you look so different from them!”
“That’s not true! My parents love me and….” Before Kathy could finish her sentence, Isabelle opened her water bottle and threw water in Kathy’s face. Anne, Isabelle, and their other friends burst out laughing, leaving Kathy in tears.
Suddenly, Isabelle noticed Mrs. Smith was about to enter their class. She warned Kathy not to tell her anything, but the little girl couldn’t stop crying after what happened at school and ran to Mrs. Smith, crying, pleading with her to call her mother because she wanted to go home.
Sarah asked Mrs. Smith about what happened at school, but it was all in vain | Photo: Pexels
Mrs. Smith tried to console Kathy, but she wouldn’t stop crying and kept asking for Sarah to come pick her up from school. Mrs. Smith eventually gave up and dialed Sarah, who rushed to the school and found Kathy seated in the teacher’s staff room in a miserable state, with tears streaming down her cheeks like a waterfall.
“Honey, what happened?” she asked, worried, hugging Kathy and comforting her. But the girl wouldn’t stop crying.
“Can we please go home, Mom? I don’t want to stay here!” Kathy replied, sobbing and wiping her nose.
“Sure, honey. Can you go to the car and wait? I’ll just talk to Mrs. Smith, okay?”
Kathy nodded her little head and left the staff room, after which Sarah confronted Mrs. Smith about what happened at school. But Kathy hadn’t told anyone about the bullying, so Mrs. Smith was equally clueless.
When Sarah returned home with Kathy, the girl dashed to her room, which was still disorganized due to Sarah and Mike’s unpacking, and locked herself in. Sarah left Kathy alone for a while because the girl did that when she was upset and eventually came out. She had no idea that day would reveal something unexpected to her.
Kathy locked herself in | Photo: Pexels
Sarah headed to Kathy’s room with the girl’s favorite cookies a few hours later, but Kathy’s door was still locked. “Honey, are you there? Are you fine now?” she asked gently, but no replies came.
Sarah knocked on Kathy’s door lightly and called out to her again. “Honey, momma bought your favorite cookies. Will you not let me in?”
Suddenly, the door swung open, and Kathy emerged, but she was still crying. Sarah’s eyes widened as she entered Kathy’s room and looked around. The entire area was in disarray, with their old photo album lying in a corner, all the pictures spilled out and spread across the floor.
“Mom, is it true that you’re not my real mother? Is this woman my real mom? Everyone says I look different from you and dad because you adopted me. Is it true?” Kathy inquired, sobbing uncontrollably and holding up a photograph of a black woman holding a baby.
Sarah hugged Kathy and comforted her. “Honey, it’s true that I didn’t give birth to you, but I love you like my own daughter. The woman you saw in the picture is your biological mother.”
“My biological mother?” Kathy asked, confused.
“Yes, honey,” Sarah continued. “Daddy and I wanted to tell you about it when you were big enough to understand everything, but now that you saw who your real mother is, let me tell you a short story. Your mother gave birth to you when….”
Kathy found a picture of a black woman and a baby | Photo: Pexels
Sarah told Kathy that her mother, Nancy, gave birth to her when she was only 15 years old. Her father, like her adoptive parents, was an American, but Nancy was African. As a result, Kathy’s appearance differed from her adoptive parents.
Unfortunately, Nancy’s mother and boyfriend did not support her after the pregnancy, so she placed Kathy for adoption. Mike and Sarah had taken the picture Kathy found, and they planned to reveal everything to her when she turned 18. But Kathy discovered the picture in an album before that, inside one of the carton boxes while looking for her toys.
“But mom, can we still contact her?” Kathy asked Sarah, curious.
“Yes, honey, we could,” Sarah said, hoping she wouldn’t let Kathy down. “However, I believe your father has all of the documents concerning your adoption. Let’s talk to him about it after he’s back from work.”
“Okay!” Kathy replied, smiling.
Later that evening, when Mike got home from work, Sarah told him everything — about how Kathy discovered the picture and the children mocking her in school. Mike took out the adoption papers and called the orphanage to inquire about Nancy and found out she was working there as a janitor.
They decided to visit Nancy with Kathy in the coming weekend, and when they did, Nancy’s happiness knew no bounds. “Oh, I never thought I’d see you again, honey. I was afraid to contact your adoptive parents!” She hugged Kathy and cried.
Nancy and Kathy reunited | Photo: Pexels
Kathy hugged her back and then turned to Sarah. “Mom, can we all please stay together? I want to stay with both of you!”
“Of course we can, honey,” Sarah said with a smile. “She is, after all, your mother.”
Later that day, Sarah and Mike flew back to Denver with Nancy, and on Monday, they went to Kathy’s school and told Mrs. Smith everything about how Anne, Isabelle, and some of Kathy’s friends had bullied her.
The kids were suspended from the school for a while after they accepted their fault, whereas Kathy stood proud in front of them, holding both of her mothers’ hands. “I’m so glad my adoptive parents chose me. I have two wonderful mothers and a loving father. But look at yours. They don’t even have a choice but to tolerate kids like you! I really feel sorry for you!” She stated and walked out the door with her parents.
What can we learn from this story?
- Relationships are formed through love and care and not necessarily blood. Sarah and Mike accepted Kathy as their own and loved her unconditionally.
- Bullying is a crime, and strict actions must be taken to stop it. Anna, Isabelle, and her friends who mocked Kathy were suspended from school because of it.
If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who spots a homeless woman eating from a dumpster and recognizes the sweetheart he lost 53 years ago.
This account is inspired by our reader’s story and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to [email protected].
