Lady Sees Portrait of Her Carbon Copy among Artist's Works, 'I Drew Her an Hour Ago,' He Says – Story of the Day

A street artist thought Emily was fooling him, but she was genuinely confused as to why he thought so. The conversation that happened between them right after surprised her and changed the course of her life forever.

Emily and her husband Michael were in New York for a much-needed weekend vacation. While strolling the busy streets of the Upper West Side, famous for its many street artists, she decided to approach one of them for a portrait.

"Hi!" Emily said enthusiastically. The artist looked at her, suddenly confused.

"Oh, you're back! How can I help you?" the man asked her.

The woman was confused as to why the artist was talking to her as if they've already met. "What do you mean? I just wanted a portrait of myself, that's why I approached you," she responded.

Suddenly, the man's expression changed, and he suddenly felt offended. "Look here, miss. I'm trying to make a living out here. I have no time for your jokes. I don't know if you had the time to change your clothes or if you're playing a prank on me with your twin, but I'm not buying it," he said angrily.

"I'm sorry if I offended you, but I genuinely just wanted a portrait of myself to take back home. I have no idea what you're talking about," Emily said, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

"Well, here. I drew your twin sister an hour ago. I found her very beautiful, so I drew a copy of the portrait to keep for my portfolio," the artist explained, showing Emily the sketch he made of a woman who looked exactly like her. She was stunned.

"But, I have no sisters..." she replied, still looking at the portrait intently. She's heard of stories of doppelgangers, but she never thought she'd have one.

When she was about to move on from the strange coincidence, she suddenly noticed that the artist drew a birthmark on the woman's neck, on the same place she had her own.

"Where... where did this woman go?" she struggled to utter. The artist pointed her towards the direction the woman went.

"She was wearing a blue jacket and had with her a red umbrella," he added.

Emily ran, hoping to meet the woman on the street. Suddenly, it all started to make sense to her, that she might possibly have a long-lost sister. After all, her father had abandoned her and her mother shortly after her birth.

In the end, Emily could not find the woman. Too much time had passed since the artist saw her, so she couldn't keep up. From a distance, the artist saw Emily look defeated, so he decided to approach her.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you find her," he started. "I remember she was on the phone with her husband and she asked him to call for a cab to their hotel. This is the hotel she mentioned," the artist said, handing Emily a piece of paper with the hotel written on it.

"Thank you, I appreciate you trying to help me. I will come back for my portrait," Emily said before getting on a cab herself to get to the hotel.

A couple of minutes after sitting quietly in the lobby, she came across the woman who looked just like her. But before she could say anything, she and the woman suddenly had eye contact. The woman stopped in her tracks.

"Oh my god...." she said, tugging on her husband's arm. Michael looked at where his wife was looking and was equally stunned.

Emily walked towards them to introduce herself. "Hi... I'm Emily. I know this is going to sound crazy and all, but when I was going to have my portrait drawn by a street artist, he thought I was fooling him because he said I already got one an hour ago. It turns out, that was you," she started to say.

Before she could say anything, the woman decided to introduce herself. "Hi, Emily. I'm Carla, and this is my husband Pete. We have the same birthmark... how could this be?" she wondered.

"Well, it's always been just my mom and I at home. My father abandoned us shortly after I was born, so I never imagined ever having a sibling," Emily explained.

"I grew up at an orphanage, so I never knew anything about my biological family, too. I really don't know what to say..." Carla replied. At this point, the three of them were seated at one of the lobby coffee tables, trying to process what was happening.

"Would you be open to taking a DNA test?" Emily suddenly said. Carla quickly said yes, and they ended up searching for a nearby lab that could give them quick results.

After a couple of hours, they met again, and the test came back 100% positive – they were siblings. When the news started syncing in, they spent time getting to know one another, alongside their husbands. Emily also told Carla about their mother, who was back in California.

That Sunday, Carla and Pete decided to fly back to California with Emily and Michael. They were determined to meet their mom, and that was something they were willing to miss work for.

When they got to California, Emily's mom, Helen, was in tears. She then explained the whole situation to Emily and Carla, feeling guilty that she kept the secret so long that it decided to unveil itself.

"Well, I lived with your father. When he found out I was pregnant, it was clear to me that he didn't love me, and did not want to live with me, even," Helen started sharing. "After I gave birth to twins, we were at home when he decided to leave. He took one of you with him."

"I tried so hard to find you, Carla. Nobody could find him. I am so sorry I gave up trying. And Emily, I am so sorry I never told you. I couldn't, I was too afraid," she said.

Then it was Carla's turn to talk. She tried to recall her early life, as far as she can remember. "I remember being about four or five years old... dad was a drunkard, and he was having money problems. At one point, he couldn't buy me any food or milk, so he brought me to an orphanage. He told me to wait at the door for ten minutes and he'd come back, but he never did," she revealed.

"In the end, I lived in that orphanage for years. I grew up there until I eventually worked my way towards a good college and got out of the system. It was tough not having a family, but I'd like to think I'm one of the lucky ones who really did their best to live a good life despite the cards I was dealt," she smiled.

"I am so glad you feel that way, Carla. And I am so grateful that the two of you found each other. This is the best day of my life. I've finally reunited with my two daughters..." Helen said, giving both her daughters a hug for the very first time since they were born.

Carla wanted to live life close to her family, so she and her husband relocated to California. The company she worked in was willing to have her work in their California office, and that enabled her to spend more time with her mother and sister.

What can we learn from this story?

• If someone's meant to be in your life, they will find their way back to you. Emily and Carla never imagined they'd meet, but life found a way for them to get to know one another. It was all thanks to the street artist whom they met in New York.
• Your childhood doesn't have to dictate how the rest of your life will be like. Carla lived a difficult early life, but this didn't stop her from persevering and getting a good education for herself.

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If you liked this story, you might like this one about a young woman who disappeared after her grandmother gave her an extremely expensive necklace.

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 info@amomama.com.