“Don’t Abandon the Old Man”: The Story of a Father Left with Nothing, Yet Still Hoping for Forgiveness
Thomas dropped by his mother’s house unannounced.
“Son, hello! Why didn’t you call first?” Margaret asked, surprised to see him at the door.
“Was just nearby and thought I’d stop in,” he shrugged.
“Come in, then. At least let me make you a cuppa,” she offered.
He stepped into the kitchen and sat at the table. There was something uneasy in his expression.
“Tom, love, what’s wrong?” Margaret asked cautiously.
“Mum, Dad’s sent me a message…” he muttered, handing her his phone.
She glanced at the screen, read it, and felt her blood run cold.
*”Son, we need to have a serious talk. Come round Saturday. Bring your brothers. It’s about the inheritance. Your father.”*
Years earlier, Margaret had arrived at work in tears. Her colleagues didn’t understand at first, but after wiping her eyes, she said:
“My husband’s left me and the boys for a younger woman.”
“You’ve been together so long! Who’d have thought…”
“Not me. He said he stopped seeing me as a woman long ago. To him, I’m just the mother of his kids. Not his wife. Not love. He asked for a divorce.”
“Maybe you smothered him? Men hate that…”
“I didn’t! I barely had time for him—kids, work, everything on my shoulders. He was a grown man. Just… that’s how he was. Always straying. When money was tight, he’d come back. Soon as he landed a good job, suddenly he wanted passion again.”
After the divorce, he moved in with a younger colleague. There were affairs, a new life, money. Then… like a bad soap opera. His career tanked, the money dried up, and his “love” quickly found a replacement.
“We’ve dumped your things by the fence,” Sarah’s new boyfriend told her. “Pick them up if you want.”
David, humiliated and lost, returned to his elderly mother’s tiny flat. That’s where he stayed—no family, no possessions, nothing but bitterness. He tried dating again, but no woman satisfied his mother. She grew bitter, jealous, rejecting every one. So he remained alone.
His sons grew up despite it all. Thomas, the eldest—serious, responsible. Worked construction, married, became a father. Michael, the middle—cheerful and kind, studied medicine, married a classmate. The youngest, Paul, stayed single but content. “I’m fine on my own,” he’d say.
Now their father had reappeared. He called. Reluctantly, the brothers went. What they saw shocked them: a filthy, damp flat, their father—pale, hunched, as if years and dignity had slipped away.
“Come in. Sit,” he rasped. “No point standing. Your mother’s gone. I’m alone. Realised no one wants me. But you’re my sons. My heirs. This flat’s yours. Don’t abandon me, and when I’m gone, it’s all yours. Split equally. Or work it out yourselves…”
The brothers exchanged glances. To say they were moved was an understatement. Pitying him, they promised to think it over. That evening, they gathered at their mother’s and told her everything—then the arguments began.
“Will you two let me have your shares?” Thomas said first. “I’ve a family, kids—I need it more.”
“Hold on,” Michael frowned. “We’re planning for a baby too. Rent’s killing us. I’d sell my share for a mortgage deposit.”
“And what about me? No family means no claim?” Paul snapped. “My share’s mine. I’ll sell it, drink it—my choice!”
Voices grew louder. Margaret, listening, couldn’t believe how close brothers had turned into foes over a flat.
“Enough!” she shouted. “What’s wrong with you? There’s no flat yet! And you’re already fighting!”
“Mum, sorry…” Thomas relented first. “Didn’t mean to upset you.”
“It’s fine,” Michael grumbled. “We’ll manage.”
“I’m not greedy, don’t want your bits,” Paul added. “Just felt like I didn’t count.”
Then their mother spoke:
“Right. I’ll sell my flat, downsize, and split the extra between you. So no one feels hard done by.”
“Mum!” they cried in unison. “No! We know you love it here. We’ll sort it ourselves.”
Margaret wept. Not from sorrow—from joy. Her three sons were different, but their hearts were the same. And for those hearts, she’d fought her whole life.
At last, that fight brought her peace.
