Boy Cries after Dropping Late Mother's Gift in Sewer, Homeless Man Comes to Help – Story of the Day

A little boy is heartbroken when he drops the pendant his deceased mother gave him before she died. A homeless man comes to his rescue, but his grandmother intervenes.

Sometimes, little hearts have to carry big burdens. When Buddy was five, his mom got very sick, and his dad got very quiet. His dad's silence was even scarier than seeing his mom sick.

His dad was big and strong and could do anything, so if he was sacred... Buddy didn't even want to think about what that might mean. Then one day, his mom called him and told him a story.

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"Buddy," she said. "Sit here by my side." Buddy did, but he sat very carefully so he wouldn't bump his mommy. She was very, very thin and pale, and her eyes looked very big.

"You know I've been sick, don't you, honey?" she asked.

"Yes," Buddy said. "That's why you were in the hospital, and the nurse comes every day. Are you going to get better soon?"

"Yes," his mom said gently. "That is what I wanted to talk to you about, Buddy. Very soon, I won't be feeling sick anymore..."

"It will stop hurting?" Buddy asked anxiously.

"Yes, it will," his mom said. "It will never hurt again. But the thing is, I have to go away."

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"Can I come with you?" asked Buddy eagerly.

His mom caressed his cheek with a trembling hand. "No, my love," she replied. "This is a journey I must make all alone."

"When will you come back?" he asked anxiously.

"I won't, Buddy," she said gently. "You must be a very brave boy, OK? I know you'll miss me, and I'll miss you too..."

"DON'T GO!" Buddy said and started crying. "I need you, mommy!"

Buddy's heartbroken mom hugged her little son and fought back her own tears. She whispered against her boy's damp curls, "I know you do, my baby.

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"And I promise that even though you won't see me, I'll be with you every second until we meet again."

Buddy sat up. "We'll meet again?" he asked. "Do you promise?"

"I do," mom said. "Many, many years from now, we'll be together. And we'll be together forever! Look."

She opened a little box and took out a chain with a silver locket. She opened the locket, and Buddy saw that there was a picture of himself with his mom inside. "I'm giving you this so that when you feel lonely, you can look at it and remember that I love you.

"I'm going to love and pray for you always, Buddy, and don't forget it! Every time you look at this locket, remember that."

A few days later, Buddy's mom left on her mysterious journey, and he found himself holding the locket and looking at her sweet face a lot. His father was very sad, and Buddy wondered why his mom hadn't given him a locket, so he asked his dad.

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"She left me you, Buddy," his dad said and hugged him very tightly. "Thank you for reminding me!"

Things were sort of OK after that, even though Buddy's grandmother came to live with them and was very strict. While Buddy had his dad and his mom's locket, everything would be OK.

One day, Buddy went shopping with his grandmother, and he wasn't being very obedient. They came out of the supermarket, and Buddy ran ahead, even though his gran kept calling him back.

Buddy had seen something fascinating. There was a storm drain on the pavement, and it looked like the doorway to some mysterious adventure.

Buddy crouched down and looked through the grate into the darkness. There was something down there, something moving! It was then that Buddy felt something snap around his neck.

His precious locket fell through the grate and vanished into the darkness! "No!" he screamed. "My locket! MOMMY! MOMMY!"

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Buddy felt a gentle hand touch his shoulder. "What's wrong?" a kind voice asked. The boy looked up and saw a man with a thick, matted beard and a long tatty coat.

"I lost my locket," Buddy sobbed. "My mommy gave it to me, and she said she went on a journey, but she died, and now I've lost the locket!"

The man looked through the grill and frowned. "Lets' see what we can do," he said. He got up, walked to a shopping cart filled with boxes and plastic bags, and rummaged around.

"I knew I had it!" he cried triumphantly. He was holding up an old wire hanger and smiling. "We'll have that locket out in no time!"

The man knelt down next to Buddy by the grate and fished around with the wire hanger for long anxious minutes. Then he pulled out the hanger, and hanging from the end was the locket!

"Thank you!" cried Buddy, clutching his locket, and he hugged the man in the tatty coat.

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"WHAT'S GOING ON?" thundered a voice. It was his grandmother, and she was frowning. "You get away from my grandson, you filthy freak!" she screamed at the man. "I'm calling the police; I'll see you in jail!"

"Stop, grandmother!" Buddy cried. "He helped me! I lost mom's locket, and he got it back from the hole!"

"What were YOU doing there?" asked his grandmother angrily. "It's against the rules!"

"I'm sorry," Buddy said. "But please don't scream at this man; he saved mom's locket!"

Two days later, he and his grandmother went to the same supermarket, and the man with the shopping cart was there. His grandmother had a big bag of groceries for the man, and Buddy had a special surprise.

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He gave the homeless man a locket just like his, and inside was a picture of Buddy.

"This," Buddy said, "is for you. So you'll know that there is someone in the world who loves you and thinks about you. Every time you look at this locket, remember that."

What can we learn from this story?

• Don't judge people by their appearance. Buddy's grandmother immediately suspected the man of harming her grandson because he was homeless.
• Knowing we are loved is what gives our lives meaning. Without realizing it, Buddy gave the man something he'd lost long ago: knowing he was loved and appreciated.

Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.

If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a little boy grieving for his recently deceased father who is worried that he will be afraid of the dark.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.