Felicity Lancer was used to getting her way, and her father knew that it was all his fault. Felicity was his only child, and when her mother had died young, John Lanver had become even more attached to his daughter.
So as the years went by, wealthy John indulged his little Felicity. She had everything she wanted, from toys, to clothes, ponies, and puppies â but nothing pleased her for very long. What John didnât realize was that it wasnât a passing phase at all, and Felicity didnât outgrow it. It got worse.
He couldnât believe there was a baby on his doorstep | Source: Shutterstock
By the time she was fifteen, Felicity was running with a wild crowd, drinking a lot, and dating grown-up men, and some of them were very unsavory characters. John thought that Felicity was wild because she had grown up without a mother.
She needed help, he thought, so he took her to a therapist. Felicity went to therapy, but it didnât seem to do her any good, and a while later John noticed that valuable items were vanishing from their house.
Then one day, Felicity was arrested for shoplifting, and John was horrified. The judge was sympathetic and ordered Felicity to do community service and (more) therapy.
Felicity didnât get better, she got worse. Not long after that, John realized that his daughter had started taking drugs. âFelicity,â he said gently. âYou know I love you and Iâd do anything for you. Iâve found a place in ArizonaâŠâ
John raised Felicity on his own after his wife passed away | Source: Unsplash
âArizona?â cried Felicity mockingly. âThat weather frizzed out my hair, daddy-oh! Forget it!â
âYou need help, Felicity,â John said. âYouâre getting closer and closer to the edge and youâre so young â if you donât pull back it will become a way of life.â
âWhat are you now?â screamed Felicity. âA shrink? Just do what you do best, and write out a check so I can get what I need!â
John was deadly pale. âNo my dear, there will be no more money,â he said. âI have had every piece of art and electronic equipment you could pawn removed from the house. Youâll have food and drink, but no money for drink or drugs.â
Felicity started leading a wild life | Source: Unsplash
âYou canât do this to me. I HATE YOU!â Felicity shrieked and tried to strike out at her dad. John held her wrists gently.
âIf you want to live in this house, there will be no drink and no drugs,â he explained. âIf you donât want that, you can leave now.â
She forgot that what you give is what you get.
âIâm leaving,â Felicity shouted. âAnd youâll be sorry, you pathetic old man! Youâll be sorry!â And with those words, Felicity walked out of Johnâs life and he never saw her again, although she did leave him a âsouvenierâ later on.
About 18 months after Felicity left, Johnâs housekeeper ran into his study. âSir? Mr. Lancer, come quick!â she gasped. Worried, John followed her to the front door where an astonishing sight greeted him.
John discovered that Felicity was taking drugs | Source: Unsplash
There was a basket on the front step, and inside it was a baby, a newborn wrapped in a hospital blanket. Pinned to the blanket was a note:
âDaddy, if you hadnât kicked me out, I wouldnât have gotten pregnant. I donât want this brat, so take her in, if you want, or put her in an orphanage, I donât care.â
John was stunned. Heâd always told himself that Felicityâs problems were because of her drinking and her drugs, but now he saw that this was who she really was. He looked down at the tiny baby and smiled.
âMaybe youâre my second chance, and this time, Iâm going to get it right,â he said. John named his grandaughter Hope and he loved her dearly. Hope grew up loving and kind and gentle and devoted to her grandfather.
John named the baby girl Hope | Source: Unsplash
She was a bright girl who did well in school and went to college, after which she started to work with her grandfather and joined his company as VP. Sadly, John passed away when Hope was just 26.
When his will was read, Hope learned that heâd left her everything he had, his money, properties, and companies â and nothing to her mother.
Hope was shattered by the loss of her only relative, and that was when Felicity made her move. She phoned Hope and asked to see her. âPlease,â she said sweetly, âItâs been so longâŠSurely Iâve been punished enough?â
âPunished?â asked Hope. âI donât understand.â
Hope grew into a sweet and loving child | Source: Unsplash
âWell, daddy wouldnât let me see you,â Felicity said tearfully. âHe said I was a bad influence â and I admit, I was into a crazy life, but Iâve changedâŠâ
Hesitantly, Hope agreed to meet Felicity the next day. When she got home, she walked into her grandfatherâs study and started going through some of the old family albums. There was her mother as a little girl!
She looked so happy, and a lot like Hope. Could she have been as bad as that? Had her kindly, loving grandfather really forbidden Felicity to see her only daughter? That just didnât sound like him at all.
Then a slip of paper fell out of one of the albums. Hope picked it up and unfolded it and read the note Felicity had left pinned to her baby blanket. âSo,â she whispered, âthatâs who you are!â
Sadly, John passed away when Hope was 26 | Source: Unsplash
The next morning, when Felicity walked into Hopeâs office, she was smiling. âMy baby!â she cried stretching out her arms, but Hope stepped back and smiled just as charmingly.
âHello, Felicity,â she said. âSo nice to meet you!â
Felicity was a bit confused but she kept her cool. âYouâre so pretty!â she cried and sat down without being asked. She looked around. âThe company looks like itâs doing really wellâŠâ
âYes,â said Hope. âWe keep making a profit, which in this current economy is a bit of a miracle.â
âOh honey,â sighed Felicity. âMy life has been hard, I can tell you! I can hardly make ends meetâŠâ Felicity dabbed at a few tears. âI hope youâll be kind to your mommaâŠâ
âYouâre not my mother.â | Source: Unsplash
âOf course,â said Hope coolly. âGrandpa left everything to me, but I think that by rights THIS belongs to you.â And she handed Felicity an envelope.
Felicity opened it eagerly, expecting to find a generous check inside. Instead, she found a much folded old note. She opened it and read: âI donât want this brat, so take her in if you wantâŠâ
She raised her head and met her daughterâs eyes. âYouâre not my mother,â Hope said. âYou never were, so take what you gave me and get out.â Felicity never tried to contact her daughter again.
What can we learn from this story?
- You canât help someone who doesnât want to be helped. John tried to help Felicity again and again, but all she wanted was for him to enable her to live how she wanted.
- Being a mother is more than just giving birth. Felicity wanted to claim Hopeâs love and loyalty for profit, but she forgot that what you give is what you get.
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