A widowed man travels a long way to retrieve his newborn baby, but when he tries to return home with the child, he is refused entry into the plane. Bob was running late. The 40-year-old had just received a call from a Florida hospital telling him a girl had just been born and he was listed as the father.
He would have discounted it as a prank, but he knew his wife was in Florida for a short holiday he organized for her while he renovated their home — it was a surprise. The two had no kids of their own and had adopted three because adoption was something they both wanted to be involved in, so they needed to add more rooms to their house, which was why he was renovating. Among the two, Bob was more particular about getting a foster child because he was one himself, and he had grown up promising himself to take in as many kids as he could.
“If I can help those kids grow up to be the best of themselves then I feel like I’ve made a huge difference,” he told his wife while they were discussing it. Bob was also father to two grown kids whom he conceived while he was with his former wife, Ellen. The two went their separate ways after the woman decided to cheat with their pool boy, and she was caught.
He met his second wife, Mary, two years later, and after dating for several months, they got married. They tried to have kids but were unsuccessful, and this motivated them to look into adoption, but they never stopped trying to make babies. One day, their persistence paid off, and Mary conceived a child.
It was in preparation of the baby’s arrival that Bob decided to expand the house to include a nursery and an extra room. After making the decision, he got Mary, who was due in two months, on a plane to Florida — a place she had always wanted to visit. But when she arrived in Florida, the woman immediately went into labor and was subsequently rushed to the hospital.
Unfortunately, she died during childbirth, so Bob was told that because the child was a newborn, it was necessary to fly out immediately. He packed his suitcases and flew to Florida to pick up her daughter. When his plane landed, he rented a car and made his way to the hospital, where his wife had allegedly passed away.
The news of her death still ate at him, but he knew there would be time to grieve later, so he focused on bringing home their only child together. When he arrived at the hospital, he met with the volunteer at the intensive care unit, a woman who was 82 years old and recently widowed. Her name was Mrs.
Sticks, and she had things to tell Bob. “What happened?” he asked her as soon as he entered her office. “Have a seat Bob,” she said calmly.
“I’m better off standing, he replied. “I’m sorry for your loss Bob, but your wife suffered some complications giving birth to your child.”
At that, Bob cried bitterly, and Mrs. Sticks quietly watched him, choosing to let him grieve.
After a few minutes, she cleared her throat and spoke. “As I understand you have come for the child, but I have to make sure that you have what it takes to care for one,” Mrs. Sticks said.
