Love isn’t meant to have conditions. But for my sister Erin, it did. Without hesitation or remorse, she gave up her adopted daughter as soon as she had a biological son. As I struggled to understand her cruelty, she simply shrugged and said, “She wasn’t really mine anyway.” But karma, as it turns out, was already on her doorstep.There are moments in life that shatter you, moments when everything you thought you knew suddenly crumbles. For me, those moments were encapsulated in four words spoken by my sister about her four-year-old adopted daughter: “I gave her back.”
We hadn’t seen Erin in months. She lived a few states away, and when she got pregnant, we gave her space. But when she had a baby boy, the entire family decided to visit and celebrate. I packed up my car with gifts, including a special teddy bear for Lily, my goddaughter, whom I adored.
When we pulled up to Erin’s house, I noticed something strange. The yard didn’t look the same. The plastic slide that Lily loved was gone, as was the small garden of sunflowers we had planted together last summer.
Erin answered the door with a smile, cradling a swaddled bundle in her arms. “Everyone, meet Noah!” she announced, turning the baby to face us.
We all cooed and gathered around. My mom reached for the baby, and my dad immediately started snapping pictures. As I glanced around, something felt off. All signs of Lily were gone. No photos, no toys, no drawings on the fridge.
“Where’s Lily?” I asked, still holding the teddy bear, my voice light.
Erin’s face instantly froze. She exchanged a brief glance with her boyfriend, Sam, who quickly looked away, busying himself with the thermostat.
Without a hint of shame, Erin said flatly, “Oh, I gave her back.”
I stared at her, confused. “What do you mean, ‘gave her back’?”
The room fell silent. My mother stopped rocking baby Noah, and my dad lowered his camera. The tension was palpable, suffocating.
“You know I always wanted to be a boy mom,” Erin said, almost as if explaining something obvious. “Now I have Noah. Why would I need a daughter? And don’t forget, Lily was adopted. I don’t need her anymore.”
I couldn’t believe my ears. “You gave her back?” I repeated, my voice rising, my gift box slipping from my hand and tumbling to the floor. “She’s not a toy you return to the store, Erin! She’s a child!”
Erin rolled her eyes and dismissed me. “Relax, Angela. She wasn’t really mine anyway. It’s not like I gave up my own kid. She was just… temporary.”
The word “temporary” hit me like a slap to the face. Temporary? As if Lily had been nothing more than a placeholder until Erin got her “real” child.
“Temporary?” I shouted, unable to contain my fury. “That little girl called you ‘Mommy’ for two years!”
“Well, she can call someone else that now,” Erin said dismissively.
How could she say such a thing? How could she toss Lily aside so easily? My mind raced through all the moments I’d witnessed Erin being a loving mother to Lily. She’d read her bedtime stories, brushed her hair, and proudly introduced her to anyone who would listen as her daughter.
“What changed?” I demanded, my heart breaking. “You fought for her. You went through mountains of paperwork, and you cried when the adoption was finalized.”
“That was before,” Erin shrugged. “Things are different now.”
“Different how?” I asked, voice shaking. “Because now you have your ‘real’ child? What message does that send to Lily?”
Erin sighed in exasperation. “Look, Angela, you’re blowing this out of proportion. I loved Lily, okay? But now that my biological son is here, I can’t divide my love anymore. He needs all my attention. Lily will find another home.”
I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. Lily wasn’t just Erin’s daughter; she was mine too, in a way. I was her godmother. I had been there for her, holding her when she cried, rocking her to sleep, feeling her little hands grasp mine as she learned to trust and love.
“You held her in your arms, called her your daughter, let her call you Mom, and then tossed her aside the moment you got your ‘real’ kid?” I said, my voice breaking.
Erin scoffed, bouncing Noah in her arms as he began to fuss. “She was a foster kid first. She knew this could happen.”
My hands were shaking. “Erin, she is FOUR YEARS OLD. You were her world. You were all she knew.”
Sam finally spoke up, trying to justify the situation. “We didn’t make this decision lightly. Noah needs all our attention right now.”
“You think abandoning her was fair?” I asked in disbelief.
Sam muttered, “The agency found her a good placement. She’ll be fine.”
Before I could respond, there was a sharp knock at the door. If only I had known that karma had already arrived.
Sam opened the door to reveal two people in professional attire—one man and one woman.
“Ms. Erin?” the woman asked, holding up an ID. “We’re from Child Protective Services. We need to speak with you regarding some concerns that have come to our attention.”
Erin’s face drained of color as she instinctively tightened her grip on Noah. “CPS? Why?”
“We have questions regarding your adoption process and your ability to provide a stable home for your son,” the woman replied calmly.
Erin looked at us, her eyes wide with disbelief. “What does he have to do with this?”
CPS entered and sat down at the table. “We have reason to believe you expedited the adoption dissolution process and dismissed necessary counseling before relinquishing custody of your daughter, Lily.”
Erin looked around, desperate for support, but none came.
“I followed all the legal procedures!” she stammered.
Her neighbor, Mrs. Thompson, had tipped off CPS about Erin’s sudden decision to return Lily just days after the birth of Noah. The revelation hit Erin hard, and her composure began to crack.
“Wait… you’re not saying—”
“Ma’am, we need to ensure that your current child is in a safe environment. We will be conducting a full investigation,” the CPS worker stated.
Erin’s desperate plea rang in my ears, but I was beyond sympathy for her. “Where is Lily now?” I asked, my voice strained.
Vanessa, the CPS worker, glanced at me. “And you are?”
“Angela, Erin’s sister. I’m also Lily’s godmother.”
“I’m afraid I can’t disclose that information at this time,” Vanessa replied, her tone measured.
Erin’s eyes filled with panic. She had cast aside Lily without a second thought, and now the system was deciding if she even deserved to keep her son.
As CPS launched their investigation, I couldn’t stop thinking about Lily. I spent the following weeks calling agencies, hiring a lawyer, and trying to find a way to bring her back into my life.
Finally, after weeks of effort, I received a call that would change everything. My lawyer had found out that Lily was still in foster care. The possibility of gaining custody suddenly seemed within reach.
I threw myself into the process, determined to give Lily the home she deserved. I transformed the spare bedroom, painting it pink and covering the walls with butterfly decals, while my parents rallied behind me with their unwavering support.
Three months later, I stood in the Family Connections Center, clutching a stuffed elephant, ready for my first visit with Lily. When I saw her sitting at a small table with crayons scattered around her, my heart shattered. She was smaller than I remembered, her eyes filled with a wariness no child her age should have.
“Lily?” I whispered.
She hesitated, then her face lit up as recognition dawned. “Auntie Angie?” she asked, her voice tentative.
I dropped to my knees, arms open, and she ran into them. “I missed you, Lily-bug,” I said, tears streaming down my face.
She pulled back, cupping my cheeks. “Where did you go? Mommy promised she’d come back, but she didn’t. Why did she leave me, Auntie?”
Her innocent question broke me. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t know where you were, but I looked everywhere for you. I promise I did.”
She nodded, her small hands holding my face gently. “I’m living with Miss Karen now. She’s nice, but she doesn’t make pancakes like you do.”
I laughed through my tears. “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to do more than visit. I’ve been talking to some people about you coming to live with me. Would you like that?”
Her eyes widened. “In your house? With the big windows?”
“Yes, sweetheart. And I’ve made a special room just for you, with pink walls and butterflies.”
“And Mommy and the baby?” she asked, her voice uncertain.
“No, sweetheart. Not Mommy or the baby. But you’ll have me… and Daddy. Just the three of us.”
Her small face furrowed in confusion. “Is Mommy still mad at me?”
My heart broke. “Mad at you? Why would you think that?”
She looked down at her hands. “I must’ve been bad. That’s why she didn’t want me anymore.”
I gently lifted her chin. “Lily, listen to me. You did nothing wrong. Nothing. Sometimes grown-ups make mistakes. Big mistakes. But this wasn’t your fault.”
She searched my eyes for the truth. “Promise?”
“I promise. And I promise something else too. If you come live with me, I will never, ever leave you. No matter what.”
“Never ever?” she asked, her voice small but hopeful.
“Never, ever, ever. That’s what family means. Real family.”
Three months later, Lily officially came home. The adoption process was long, but in the end, I proved I would be the mother she deserved.
The day I signed the final papers, my husband Alex was by my side, along with my parents. When the judge declared us officially a family, Lily threw her arms around my neck. “We did it, Mommy!” she cried.
MOMMY. The word I had waited so long to hear, from the child who had always held a piece of my heart.
Lily turned six last week. Her birthday was filled with laughter, friends, and the love of a family who fought for her. In her eyes, I could see everything that she needed—safety, love, and a place to call home.
Erin may have abandoned Lily, but Lily found her way to me. Sometimes, the family you fight for becomes the one you were always meant to have.
