A few months after welcoming her twin baby boys, my 51-year-old mother-in-law tearfully pleaded with me to adopt them after her death. I could not hold back my tears when she made another heartbreaking revelation.
My life was at the peak of bliss. What more could I ask for than a beautiful little nest full of love and warmth? I was blessed with my loving husband, William, and our three little sons, who made my life happier and busier every single day.
We were not very affluent but always had reasons to celebrate every little joy that came our way, and William’s twenty-seventh birthday marked another important day of feasting, fun, and family time. We threw a birthday party at our house and invited my in-laws, family members, and friends.
Everything was going fine. Laughter sprawled across our little home, and joy filled our hearts as William raised a toast. That’s when my mother-in-law, Marley, chimed in and made another toast.
“To my two little buns in the oven!!” she announced, and grave silence filled the room. My 50-year-old mother-in-law was pregnant with twins through IVF…
William was extremely embarrassed. Some cheered and toasted with my mom-in-law, while others started whispering things. My husband was visibly furious. I held his hand and gestured for him to stay calm.
“We can sort this out later, hun. People are watching,” I whispered.
I knew it would be hard for William to digest the news because we were planning another baby. While we dreamed of becoming parents again, my husband was going to be a brother.
Grief and love are like conjoined twins. You do not get one without the other.
“Jessica, you don’t understand. How could mom even do this? She’s fifty and turning fifty-one soon… How could she even—” William fumed. I was trapped between my husband and his mother.
I knew my mom-in-law and her husband had been dealing with a relationship crisis for a long time. Maybe she thought having babies could heal and fix their differences. I was not sure, but I sincerely pitied my mother-in-law. I knew this was not an easy decision she made overnight. She must have thought about it deeply, and it came at the cost of all her savings.
Months passed, and a week after my mom-in-law turned fifty-one, she welcomed her twin baby boys. It was a complicated childbirth, so I stayed close to her in the maternity ward.
Soon, all that pain and trouble she endured turned into joy when she heard the loud cries of her two little bundles of joy. She was the happiest—I could tell by looking at the endless tears of joy flowing from her eyes as she held her infants. It brought tears to my eyes too, and I was so happy for her.
Then all of a sudden, my phone rang. I could hear William sobbing, and then he stammered:
“Hon—Honey, daddy met with an accident. He died on the spot.”
“WHAT??” I dropped the phone and looked at my mother-in-law, who was the happiest on earth, cuddling her babies. How will I tell her that her husband is dead? I cried outside the ward. But the truth had to come out one way or the other.
