Poor Mom Buys Kid's Backpack at Flea Market, Tiny Purse with Amulet Falls from Inside — Story of the Day

I bought a backpack for my daughter at a flea market and found a tiny purse with an amulet and Japanese coins inside it. Since I had only paid for the bag, keeping the purse and the things inside felt wrong. So I decided to return everything, not knowing it would lead me to an unexpected blessing.

I met my husband, Fred, in foster care. Both of us were orphaned at a young age and soon became each other's entire lives. We married shortly after finishing high school and had a baby girl named Alicia just one year later.

Fred worked as a handyman, and I was a stay-at-home mom. While Fred worked very hard for our family, we were barely getting by. I suggested to Fred that I could work as a part-time nanny to help him financially, but both of us knew it wasn't going to work out. We needed someone who could look after Alicia.

When Alicia turned six, Fred passed away due to a heart attack. Doctors said he'd been overworking himself, and that took a toll on his body. I didn't even have the time to mourn my husband and started looking for jobs to support our daughter. A few months later, I found a job as a waiter at Cuisine Wave, a small resto-bar not far from our home.

I was working extremely hard to make sure Alicia had everything, but no matter how hard I tried, the money was never enough.

One day, Alicia returned from school and said she needed a new school bag. I sighed. I knew Alicia's old backpack was torn and had holes I had sewn with patches countless times. I couldn't say no to my baby girl. She was right. We needed a new backpack.

Unfortunately, I was short on cash that month, so I knew I couldn't afford to buy a new one. And that's why I decided to go to the flea market. I walked along rows of stalls and saw several pretty bags, but my budget was small, so I continued walking through the market until I came across a gorgeous tiny pink backpack.

The fabric, though old, boasted some pretty designs, and it was exactly within my budget, so I bought it.

When Alicia returned from school, I surprised her with the new bag. My little girl was overjoyed and began hurriedly transferring all of her books to her new bag when something fell from inside.

"Mom! Did you buy this for yourself?" she asked, picking up an old-fashioned maroon silk clutch.

"A purse? No, it's not mine, honey. Where did you find it?"

"It was inside my new school bag, Mom. I thought it was yours."

I felt a certain weight in my hands as I held the purse. Opening it, I found a few Japanese coins and an amulet. The amulet had a silvery color and an intricate pattern, with a photograph of a couple and a child inside.

I carefully placed the contents on a table and turned the backpack over to see if there was anything else inside. Suddenly, a small, partially torn address tag fell to the floor. I picked it up and noticed it bore an address somewhere in Colorado, where I lived.

"Lexi T, 60 Oakland Ave, #216, Colorado," it read.

I figured it must be the owner's address and decided to return the purse to her.

Leaving Alicia with a neighbor the next day, I went to the address and found myself at a massive mansion that was put up for sale. I talked to the neighbors, and an elderly lady named Mrs. White told me that Lexi was the daughter of the couple who lived in the mansion.

Lexi's mother, Amanda, had passed away a few months ago. After that, Amanda's husband, Ashton, relocated to Wheat Ridge with their daughter.

I told Mrs. White I had something to return to Ashton and needed to find him. Luckily, Mrs. White helped me and gave me Ashton's new address.

The next day, I applied for a leave of absence and took a cab with my daughter, determined to meet him. When I arrived at the address Mrs. White had given me and knocked on the door, a tall, slender man, somewhat in his early 30s, answered.

"Hi! Are you Ashton? Amanda's husband?" I asked.

"Yes, how may I help you?"

"Hi, I'm Rachel. I found a clutch inside a bag I bought for my daughter two days ago. It had your daughter's address in it."

"Oh, so that's where it was!" Ashton gasped as he held the clutch in his hands. "Thank you so much! I was looking for it everywhere. Please come in."

As we settled inside, Ashton told me the amulet and coins belonged to Amanda. She'd passed away in a tragic plane crash during a work trip to Japan. The purse and amulet were among Amanda's belongings that cops recovered and returned to Ashton.

Lexi missed her mother a lot, so Ashton decided to put the purse with the amulet in her backpack as a reminder of Amanda. However, when they relocated to Wheat Ridge, he sold some of their old belongings, and somehow, the backpack got into the mix.

"I'm so grateful to you for returning it. Lexi kept crying for days when she couldn't find it. I don't even know how to thank you," he told me.

"Please, it wasn't a big deal. I'm glad I could help you."

"And how do I thank you, little one? Would you like to have some cookies and milk?" he asked Alicia with a smile.

"Oh no, that's fine," I replied. "Please don't trouble yourself."

"Trust me, that is no trouble," Ashton said as he proceeded to the kitchen. "You guys brought me something that means the whole world to me. This is the least I can do."

A few minutes later, Ashton returned with cookies and milk for Alicia and two cups of tea. We chatted for a while before I left, but that's not where things ended.

We started meeting often. Our encounters started with Ashton wanting to express his gratitude further and soon turned into regular visits to help each other cope with our losses.

The shared experiences and mutual support led to a deep connection and, over time, blossomed into love. Almost one year later, we solidified our relationship with marriage and welcomed a beautiful baby girl into the world.

I believe everything happens for a reason. I met Ashton because we were destined to form a beautiful family. While we have moved forward in life, we haven't forgotten the love and support of our deceased partners. They will always have a special place in our hearts. Both Ashton and I know that.

Moving on is a sign of healing, not of dishonoring the memory of our loved ones.

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If you enjoyed reading this story, here's another one | A man's mother has passed away, so he comes to his hometown to pay his respects to her. He is shocked when he finds a tombstone bearing his name and a child's photo near her grave... Full story here.

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