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<\/p>\nA rich man is about to devour his donut during lunch break when a squeaky voice behind him asks, \u201cCan you give me your donut, sir?\u201d The man turns around to see a little boy and is shocked that he\u2019s his carbon copy.<\/p>\n
Peter exited his office building during lunch break and walked straight to the cafe across the street. Once there, he ordered his favorite glazed donut and coffee and sat on a table outside the eatery, enjoying his own company.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how Peter was. He loved admiring the wave of humanity passing the streets as he ate his lunch alone. His employees wondered why he did that. After all, it\u2019s not every day that you see a rich businessman eating a $1 donut at a cheap cafe for lunch.<\/p>\n
But Peter didn\u2019t care. He was a down-to-earth man who didn\u2019t bother much about the mouths talking behind his back.<\/p>\n
That day, Peter was about to take a bite of the donut when a squeaky voice behind him asked, \u201cCan you give me your donut, sir?\u201d Peter was not prepared for what he saw next\u2026<\/p>\n
Upon hearing the voice, Peter immediately turned around to see a little kid, probably six, in tears behind him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am very hungry. Can I please have that?\u201d he asked, looking at the donut with hungry eyes, and Peter took a moment before he could reply. The boy was a vivid image of him.<\/p>\n
\u201cUh, well, yeah, sure, buddy,\u201d he eventually said as he handed the donut to the child, still taken aback by the boy\u2019s resemblance to him.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank\u2014Thank you, sir,\u201d the kid said and sat on a chair beside Peter. He began to eat the donut.<\/p>\n
Peter couldn\u2019t take his eyes off him. It was as if he was watching a younger version of him devouring a donut. What surprised him more was the birthmark on the boy\u2019s arm, which was the same as his. That really worried Peter.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, hey, slow down. I can get you more if you want,\u201d Peter said. \u201cWhere are your parents, buddy? And what\u2019s your name?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m Joe,\u201d the boy replied. \u201cMy daddy died, and I live with mommy at a place where a lot of poor people live.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA shelter?\u201d asked Peter. \u201cHow did you get here alone? It\u2019s not safe for kids to roam around like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was very hungry, and mommy didn\u2019t have money, so I thought I could ask someone for help. I know the way back,\u201d he said. \u201cThank you for your help, sir. Can you buy me another donut for my mommy? She is hungry, too\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Children shouldn\u2019t pay for their parents\u2019 sins.
\n\u201cThis could be the chance,\u201d Peter thought. \u201cMaybe meeting his mother can help me find answers. But I can\u2019t digest how this kid\u2026How does he look so similar to me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Peter was desperate to find the reason behind their uncanny resemblance, so he decided to buy the boy some food to take to his mother and accompany him. \u201cI hope this helps, though\u2026\u201d he thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust wait here. I\u2019ll be right back, Joe, ok?\u201d he said, and the youngster nodded.<\/p>\n
Peter bought some sandwiches and donuts for Joe and his mom then drove the boy to the shelter. Joe was sitting in the back seat of Peter\u2019s car, and Peter couldn\u2019t stop glancing at him through the rearview mirror the entire ride. Who was this little boy?<\/p>\n
\u201cMommy! I\u2019m back, and I got you food!\u201d Joe cried as he ran out of the car, holding the food packets in his hand. The shelter was close to Peter\u2019s office, just a 15-minute ride.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, careful, Joe!\u201d Peter shouted, quickly getting out of the car and following the boy inside. But Peter wasn\u2019t prepared for what he saw. It shook him, to say the least.<\/p>\n
Joe\u2019s mother was the reason Peter was never happy as a teenager. She was the reason his mother cried instead of sleeping most nights. She was the reason Peter\u2019s father left them to fend for themselves several years ago. Peter\u2019s father was in love with Joe\u2019s mother and had left his family for her.<\/p>\n
Peter\u2019s mother worked three jobs and raised him alone. Peter never enjoyed his teenage days because he was forced to become the man of the house. He did odd jobs to help his mom while finishing his education.<\/p>\n
Years later, he made a name for himself, and their condition improved. Peter had never expected to cross paths with his past in this manner.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo Joe is your son. No wonder that birthmark\u2026\u201d he said, approaching Joe\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, it\u2019s you!\u201d she said, embarrassed and startled, as she recognized him. \u201cDid you get all this for us?\u201d<\/p>\n
He nodded. \u201cWhat are you doing here? How,\u201d he hesitated. \u201cHow did you and Joe end up here?\u201d<\/p>\n
Suddenly, tears welled up in the woman\u2019s eyes. \u201cJoe, honey, can you please wait inside? Mom will be right back.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOk, mommy! And thank you for helping us, sir,\u201d Joe said before disappearing with the food packets.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so sorry for what I did, Peter,\u201d the woman, Rachel, said. \u201cYour father died years ago, soon after Joe was born. He was diagnosed with cancer. We spent almost everything on his treatment, but he never recovered. That explains why we\u2019re here today.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you contact us?\u201d he asked. \u201cHonestly, I don\u2019t care about you or my father, but I do care about Joe. For God\u2019s sake, he\u2019s a child! He doesn\u2019t deserve to pay for your sins! Don\u2019t forget that Joe is a part of my father! He is family.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeter\u2026\u201d she whispered. \u201cThank you. Thank you for caring for Joe\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTake Joe and come with me if you want to thank me. You\u2019re not staying here any longer!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut what about your mom? She\u2014She will hate me! I ruined her marriage!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, yes, you did that, but she won\u2019t hate you, Rachel,\u201d Peter said. \u201cThat\u2019s what sets my mom apart. She would embrace Joe like her own child. I know my mother. She\u2019s got a big heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
Deep down, Peter hated Rachel. He despised her. But he chose to forgive her because Joe\u2019s crying face reminded him of his younger self.<\/p>\n
In Joe, Peter saw his helpless younger self who wanted to cry on someone\u2019s shoulder during difficult times but had to pretend to be strong. Joe was his brother, and Peter couldn\u2019t abandon him after learning he was struggling.<\/p>\n
He brought them home, which hurt his mother, Mary, but after seeing little Joe, she quickly kept her tears at bay and forced a smile on her face.<\/p>\n
\u201cHello,\u201d Joe said to Mary. \u201cPeter told me you were family. It\u2019s so nice to meet you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHi, little boy,\u201d Mary said and hugged him. \u201cWould you like some cookies and milk? I enjoy baking cookies, but I no longer do that now that Peter is grown. He used to enjoy cookies as well. Do you want some?\u201d<\/p>\n
Joe nodded with a smile. \u201cI love cookies. It\u2019s funny how Peter and I look like each other, and we both love cookies!\u201d<\/p>\n
That remark brought tears to Mary\u2019s eyes, but she laughed it off. \u201cOh, well, you\u2019re no different than my son. Let\u2019s eat cookies together, and Rachel, you can rest in the guest room. Please make yourself at home.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was NOT easy for Mary or Peter to forgive Rachel for what she\u2019d done, but was she to be blamed for everything? No, she wasn\u2019t. Because Peter\u2019s dad was equally responsible. And more importantly, Joe was nowhere at fault for what happened.<\/p>\n
So Mary and Peter decided to move on and embrace a fresh start rather than dwell on the past.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A rich man is about to devour his donut during lunch break when a squeaky voice behind him asks, \u201cCan you give me your donut, sir?\u201d The… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3461,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n