Parents Fear Telling 8-Year-Old Son They’re Adopting a Child, He Finds Out and Disappears – Story of the Day

A couple who already have a son decides to adopt a little girl but they are afraid of how their child will react, then he runs out of the house.

Mary and Brad Gersh loved their son. They had always planned on having a big family, but two years after little Eddie was born, Mary had a miscarriage.

After that, doctors told her that another pregnancy would probably cost her her life, so another baby was out of the question. Or was it? For a long time the Gershs talked about adoption, then one day they made a decision.

All they had to do was tell Eddie...

Mary and Brad had a meeting with their social worker who told them that they would be receiving their new baby -- a girl -- within the next two weeks.

It was time to break the news to Eddie. "I don't know, Brad!" Mary said anxiously. "Eddie's been an only child for eight years. I hope he takes it well..."

"We've spoken about adoption as a family," Brad pointed out. "He knows we are candidates, and he always seemed cool about it -- even excited!"

"But..." Mary hesitated. "It's one thing to speak about a distant possibility, it's quite different when that possibility becomes your reality. He may not be as happy about it as we are."

"We won't know until we tell him," Brad said. "Let's just call him and break the news."

Mary called out, "Eddie, honey! Why don't you come and join us? We have some news for you!"

A few minutes later, Eddie walked in with his baseball mitt under his arm. "Hey, guys!" he said. "What's up?"

Mary patted the sofa next to her. "Sit down, Eddie," she said. "Daddy and I want to talk to you." Eddie sat and looked questioningly at his parents.

Brad cleared his throat. "Well, Eddie," he started. "You know how mom and I talked to you about maybe giving you a new little brother or sister?"

"Yeah!" Eddie said. "You said we could adopt a kid who needed a family."

"That's right!" Mary smiled. "Well, we've had some news. You will be getting a new sister in the next two weeks..."

"A sister?" asked Eddie. "How old is this kid?"

Brad and Mary exchanged a quick glance. "This little girl is a baby, Eddie," she explained. "She's just been born..."

"You mean small like with diapers and baby bottles and stuff like that?" Eddie asked, frowning.

"Yes..." Mary replied. "That's right!"

"But...a baby that small..." Eddie looked worried. "You'll need to look after it ALL THE TIME!"

Brad was starting to look worried. "Eddie, that doesn't mean we won't have time for you..."

"So it will be crying all the time..." Eddie said. "And it will be..."

"It's not an 'it', Eddie," Mary corrected. "It's a 'she,' it's a girl, and her name is Kim. She's your baby sister, Kim."

Eddie just stared at his mom and dad, then he jumped to his feet and ran upstairs. Mary leaped up. "Eddie," she cried. "Wait!"

Brad placed a hand on Mary's arm. "Let him go," he advised. "He needs time. This is a big deal, a big change in his life. We'll talk to him again later."

Three hours later, Mary went upstairs to call Eddie down to dinner and had a big shock. Eddie was gone! His room was a huge mess, and his piggy bank lay broken in the middle of the floor.

"Brad!" Mary cried. "Come quick. I think Eddie's run away!"

"What?" gasped Brad. "Ran away?"

"He took his money..." Mary was crying. "Oh, Brad, he probably thinks we will pay more attention to the baby..."

"Calm down, Mary," Brad said. "We'll phone his friends. If he's not with them, we'll call the police."

Mary and Brad called all of Eddie's closest friends, but none of them knew where he was. The distraught couple was about to call the police when they heard the front door open.

"Eddie!" Mary gasped and ran to the door. It WAS Eddie. "Where have you been? We were so worried!"

"Listen, son," Brad said. "Just because there's going to be a baby in the family doesn't mean we love you any less, or that we will have less time for you..."

Eddie looked at his dad scornfully. "I know THAT!" he cried. "I'm not a BABY!"

"We're so glad you came back, Eddie," Mary sobbed. "When we saw you'd run away..."

"RUN AWAY?" Eddie cried. "I didn't run away! I took the money from my piggy bank and caught the bus to the mall and I got this for the baby."

Eddie opened his backpack and took out a pretty pink globe with clouds and unicorns painted on the surface.

"See? It's a night light," Eddie explained. "You are going to be looking after the baby all day, so I thought maybe she could sleep in my bedroom at night?

"And the nightlight is in case Kim gets scared of the dark."

Mary ran to her son and put her arms around him. "Oh, Eddie," she cried. "I love you so much! You are going to be the best big brother ever!"

Eddie just grinned. "I know that!"

What can we learn from this story?

• Children will always surprise you with their sweetness and their good hearts. Mary and Brad expected Eddie to be jealous, but he wasn't. His first concern was helping his parents and comforting his little sister.
• Family is about love and commitment, not biology. Even before they met her, Mary, Brad, and Eddie took Kim into their hearts and loved her as if she was their own blood.

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