Son Packs His Things & Abandons Dad on His Deathbed after Raising Him Alone

• A single dad raised his son alone for years.
• When the dad fell terminally ill, he asked if his son could look after him once in a while, and he did.
• One day, something angered his son that caused him never to return, even when his father died.

A single dad raised his son alone. They were close but lived in different states when the son started his own life.

The dad's home was a six-hour drive away from his son. Although the son visited him occasionally, his cancer diagnosis changed things for them.

The dad received a stipend from the government to pay for a part-time caregiver. However, he and his wife (the son's stepmother) suggested that rather than paying for a caregiver, the son could come around more often, and they would give the stipend to him instead.

By this time, the dad could no longer walk. He needed help with chores and getting in and out of bed. The son agreed it may be best to stay with his dad so they could spend time together. He was telecommuting then, so it wasn't much of an inconvenience.

Caring for His Dying Father & the Issue with His Wife

Soon after the son moved into his dad's home, along with his wife, the dad's condition worsened. The doctor warned the family that he only had a few months to live.

The son and his wife had been together since high school, so the woman was no stranger to his dad and stepmother. When she heard her father-in-law had months to live, she wanted to see him despite her anxiety.

The woman had intense social phobia. She rarely interacted with anybody other than her husband and her own family. It hadn't always been like this, and she used to get along with her husband's dad.

Aware of his wife's condition, the son asked his dad if he was okay with his wife coming out, warning him that she might be anti-social despite her visit. The dad said it was fine, even noting that he was used to dealing with people with anxiety because of his role as an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting leader.

At first, everything went well. The dad showed his daughter-in-law around the property, and they enjoyed their time together. However, on the second day, she stayed inside her bedroom because it was a hot and humid day. She was also sensitive to heat and the house had no air conditioning.

Towards the end of the day, the dad, who felt uncomfortable with his son's wife retreating to her room the whole day, confronted his son, asking if his wife could leave.

Furious, the son explained, "It had been a serious emotional sacrifice for her to come out, plus I was offended at the disrespect to me for doing that after I'd come out and helped him."

The Aftermath

The wife was in tears during their car ride home. The man also realized then that his dad never gave him the stipend he offered, even after staying there for weeks.

The stipend didn't matter to him – he would have told them to spend it on fixing the house or to get something he needed. However, he felt betrayed after realizing it was never offered to him in the first place.

Months later, the dad passed away. The man's stepmother was still angry with him and refused to give him back some of the things he had left in her home when they stormed out.

After all that happened, the man was confused about whether or not what he did was wrong. There was no turning back time, and he would no longer get to see his dad again, but a part of him wished things didn't turn out the way they did.

Did the man do the right thing by supporting his wife, or was he wrong for abandoning the man who raised him alone?

In a similar story, a mother dreamt of meeting her son's girlfriend only to kick her out minutes after she walked in the door. Click here to read all about it.