Sons Ignore Mom’s Pleas to Restore House after Storm, Learn Neighbor’s Boy Inherits Her Legacy – Story of the Day

Lonely Ella had given up on all hopes of getting the roof of her precious home fixed. But then, one day, a six-year-old boy showed up and helped fix more than just the broken roof.

71-year-old Ella lived alone in a house that had nothing much other than memories.

On the outside, the house looked like it was older than time itself. The facade had a thin layer of moss, blackened paint, and several cracks and stains that spoke of a home that had seen its sunny and rainy days.

But on the inside, it was the most lovingly decorated little abode. Every corner of every room radiated with the love and warmth that Ella once had in her life. It was a little piece of paradise where she and her husband Gerard had raised three bright boys decades ago…

"Mama's little helpers!" Ella would call her sons back when they were toddlers. Ray, Richie, and Roman would run around the house, shadowing their mother as she did the dishes, helping her fold the laundry with their tiny hands, watering the plants in the backyard, and making her smile with their thoughtful little intentions.

Years went by, and after Gerard tragically died, the three siblings realized that their father had been the glue holding them together. Without him, their differences got bigger. The young men moved as far away from each other as they could and forgot that they still had one parent left, yearning for their love.

Ella had been living a life deprived of that love for more than thirty years. And by now, the home was the only piece of that beautiful past left in her life.

"Now that's the nicest-looking part of my roof!" Ella marveled with childlike awe.

That's why it broke her heart when a storm hit her old town and brought a part of the house's roof crumbling down to the ground.

The day after the storm, Ella tried calling her sons to tell them about the roof. "They may not care about me, but they'll at least care about the house they grew up in," she thought.

But like every other time she had tried to reach out to her sons, nobody wanted to step up and help.

"I'm too busy to just drop everything and go there, mom. Ask your other precious sons…" Each of the young men had the same hurtful thing to tell her.

The house had flooded with rainwater, and Ella hurt her back while trying to get rid of the water, but she managed. But the roof was still ruined, and after a few days, she gave up hope that it would ever be fixed. She knew no one was going to come to her rescue. She knew that she didn't have any little helpers anymore.

It turned out she was wrong about that last bit…

Because a week after the storm, she saw someone standing in front of her house, examining the broken roof.

It was a little boy, about six or seven years old, and he was scratching his chin, looking at Ella's house from different angles.

"Hello, child. What are you looking at?" Ella asked the boy with a curious smile.

"Hello! Your poor roof needs fixing…can I help?"

The boy's unusual kindness almost made her eyes well up because it reminded her of her own boys when they were his age.

"Thank you, dear, but your tiny hands might not be able to do much. My big old hands can't do anything about it either!" Ella said, showing the little child her hands.

"I really can help! Our roof was broken by the storm, too, but daddy fixed it up in less than a day! And he said he couldn't have done it without my help." The kid beamed with pride as he pointed to the shiny new roof of the neighboring house.

Ella was surprised someone still lived there. She was about to ask the boy his name when the kid ran into his house, calling out to his father.

A few minutes later, the boy returned in front of Ella's house with his father.

"Good morning! I'm Lester. My son Danny tells me you need help fixing the roof. Can I take a look at it? I'm a small-time contractor, and I would be happy to help," the man said with a kind smile.

"So would I!" Danny added enthusiastically.

The kind neighbor brought his toolbox and some supplies, and by the time the sun went down, he had managed to neatly patch up the part where Ella's roof was shattered.

"Now that's the nicest-looking part of my roof!" Ella marveled with childlike awe. "I can't thank the both of you enough," she added with tearful eyes. "And I can't let you go without a nice cup of coffee. And hot chocolate for this brilliant little mini-contractor!"

Lester wasn't very keen, but Ella and Danny insisted, so he stayed for a while.

Over the warm drink, Ella learned the heartbreaking story of her new neighbors. Lester had moved in with his wife and Danny into the neighborhood a few days before the storm. They used to have a slightly more comfortable home in the city, but they had been struggling financially for quite a while.

"My wife, Sue, is sick. She has a rare heart condition that can only be treated by a handful of doctors around the world. So you can imagine how much it must cost…" Lester's voice shivered vulnerably.

"She got sick a year after Danny was born, and it's been hard ever since. But I haven't given up yet. We moved into this smaller place to save up on rent, and I've started seeking odd jobs to add to the savings."

"My Danny is a gem, too. He comes back from school and goes straight by his mother's bed, talking to her, listening to her, and taking care of her small needs... We're all hopeful. But still, I can't shake off the feeling that I'm not doing enough…" Lester gulped down his urge to burst into tears.

The next day, Ella went to visit Sue, and soon, they became friends. Ella decided to help the kind family out by cooking two meals a day for them. That also meant that she got to spend more time with Danny, and that was the biggest reward she could ask for.

Months passed, and Ella became a part of Danny's family. There wasn't a day when all of them wouldn't share a round of coffee and conversation before sundown.

One such evening, Ella was particularly emotional and said, "Things are going to work out for you more beautifully than you can imagine. All your troubles will be eased, and you will remember me that day…"

That sunset was the last one in Ella's life. A few days after her peaceful passing, after Lester and his family planted tearful kisses on Ella's gravestone, they returned home to discover their life would never be the same.

A lawyer showed up at their door, waiting to hand them an official letter.

It turns out Ella had left her home, the only inheritance she had, to little Danny, so that he could become a well-educated, successful man someday, and he could help his mother get better just like he had helped Ella.

Miles away, in three different corners of the country, the same letter was received by three young men who were still too busy to fly to their mother's grave.

"Who on earth is this 'Danny,' and why did mom care?" Their hearts echoed with the same question.

When they finally did visit their old house, Ray, Richie, and Roman were shaken with shock and regret. They realized that their mother had found a child to love and gave him the small priceless piece of paradise she had.

What can we learn from the story?

• Be the rainbow in someone else's cloud. Little Danny and his father chose to step up and help their old neighbor with one task - and that ended up changing all their lives.
• Be generous, even when you don't have much. Both Lester and Ella were living modestly, but that didn't stop them from helping each other in any way they could.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about another kind child who offered a lonely older woman a seat on the bus when no one else would and gets unexpected kindness in return...

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers 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.