Sienna was very shy as a child and had a hard time making friends. When she met Jenny, it was one of her greatest childhood joys, even though they were from completely different worlds.
Jenny’s family was very poor, unlike Sienna’s. They met by chance in a park and connected immediately.
Jenny was always shunned by everyone, but Sienna made her feel like she had a place in the world. They became best friends and would meet at the park every day after school.
Sometimes Sienna would walk Jenny home and it saddened her to see the conditions she lived in. She didn’t understand why some people had to live in poverty, while people like her had more than they needed.
One day, when she learned that Jenny would be going into foster care, Sienna’s heart broke. The state revoked her parents’ parental rights because they could not provide the necessary living conditions for their daughter.
Sienna desperately wished she could help her. She didn’t want to lose her, but she was powerless and Jenny moved to a foster home in another city. She tried to find her, but her efforts were in vain and she was devastated.
Years later, when Sienna grew up and got married, she decided that she would adopt a baby even though she could have one of her own. She thought it was a wonderful thing to provide a child with better living conditions and opportunities. However, her parents made it clear to her that they were against it.
“Adoption, are you crazy, you can’t just bring anyone off the streets into our family!” her mother shouted, as Sienna tried to explain her motives.
“That’s a disgrace!” her father added.
She and her husband decided they would go ahead anyway. They went to the adoption shelter, and Sienna felt connected to a quiet blind boy named Lucas.
The shelter caregiver explained that no one wanted to adopt him, which further encouraged Sienna. He was an outcast, just as her friend Jenny had been.
“One man came to take him in and gave him back three days later,” the caregiver sadly explained.
Sienna was more than determined. She was going to adopt Lucas. Her husband was somewhat concerned about the difficulty of raising a blind child. Nevertheless, he supported her wholeheartedly.
Her parents were furious about that decision. They tried to persuade Sienna to reconsider, but she would not budge. As a result, they disinherited her when she adopted the blind child.
“We can’t have the BLIND CHILD OF A STRANGER as our heir!” her mother shouted at her.
While those words hurt Sienna, she was happy to start her new family. She and her husband loved Lucas dearly, and grew closer and closer to him as time went on. They read poems and books to him every day.
In time, the couple discovered that the boy had a unique ability. Lucas had a perfect memory and the ability to recite poems word for word. He began lending his voice to children’s books, poetry and, later, even cartoons.
Eventually, Lucas decided to open an audiobook agency. The first few years were difficult, but soon his company began to gain ground.
After a lot of hard work, Lucas was a great success and Sienna was very proud of her son. He had overcome enormous difficulties, and that made her think of Jenny. She hoped she was doing well and had found her place in the world.
One day, she received an unexpected call from her father. His voice sounded very different, there was a deep desperation in it.
“Sienna, my daughter, I know we have had our differences. But I need your help,” he explained.
The man had been involved in an accident, where he hit someone with his car. After that, he dealt with many lawsuits, which bankrupted his business. He knew Sienna was doing well and asked her to help him.
“My husband and I live off our work; as much as I want to help you, I don’t have the solvency to do so. However, maybe the ‘stranger’s blind child’ can lend you some of his money. He’s doing well.”
“The only thing I wonder is that if he wasn’t good enough to be your heir, would your conscience allow you to accept his money?” asked Sienna.
Embarrassed, her father didn’t know what to say.
