Margaret’s husband, George, died in a car accident. Even though it had been months, she still continued to mourn greatly for him because he swore he would love her forever and never leave.
George loved talking about Margaret to his peers and never spoke about himself. In fact, he barely said anything about his past to Margaret, thinking it wasn’t relevant to their relationship.
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On random days, he’d buy white roses and lilies and give them to her once he got home from work. When he died, Margaret knew it was only right for her to bring him the same flowers at his grave every time she visited. To her, this was the symbol of their eternal love.
One day, Margaret went to the cemetery and noticed the flowers she left previously had been trampled on and discarded. Upset, she purchased another bouquet and came back the next day to see whether or not it’d end up the same way.
True enough, she saw the same thing – the flowers were ruined and thrown to the side. Wanting an answer to why this kept happening, Margaret decided to visit her husband’s grave every day until she got one.
A few days later, she made a discovery. Margaret saw a woman near her husband’s grave, crying. She was dressed in loose, old clothing and looked tired with swollen feet.
Margaret decided to approach the woman to ask if she was okay. The woman sobbed, explaining that the man who abandoned her with three young children to marry a rich woman had died. “He abandoned us, wanting a better life without even thinking about his children,” she said bitterly.
Margaret immediately felt sorry for her. “You poor thing! My husband was such a good, loving man. I can’t imagine what it’s like to have a husband like that. We never had any children, but I’m sure he would have been a great father. Really, I’m sorry you had to experience that,” she told the woman.
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The other woman stared at her blankly. She couldn’t understand why Margaret was talking about how great her husband was when she had just told her about her bad experience. “Is THAT your husband?” she asked, pointing at the grave.
“Yes,” Margaret replied with a sad smile on her face. “That’s George, my sweet husband.”
The woman scoffed, shaking her head. “I knew it,” she said.
Margaret was surprised at the woman’s reaction. “I’m sorry. Excuse me?” she clarified, trying to understand what the woman was trying to say.
“To me, he isn’t your sweet husband. He’s the George who abandoned his children to starve while he went to marry you and live a lavish life,” the woman said bitterly.
Margaret couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her knees trembled, but she tried her best to stay strong. After all, she was certain the woman was lying.
“You must be mistaken,” Margaret replied. “I was his first and only wife…” she said, her voice trailing.
Once again, the woman shook her head and pulled out two pictures from her small purse. The first was a photo of a younger George getting married to her in a drive-by, while the second was him with their three children.
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Margaret was horrified. She couldn’t remove her trembling hand from her mouth, slowly having to internalize that her husband hadn’t been honest with her.
Seeing Margaret’s reaction, the woman began talking again. “George grew up poor and worked his way to being an attorney. However, he wasn’t content with being in a small firm. He wanted to go big, and he eventually met you and married you, another successful lawyer from one of the country’s top firms.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t know any of this…” Margaret said, trembling. Her knees gave in, and she ended up sitting on the ground right in front of George’s grave. She stared at it long and hard, still in disbelief that he could betray her that way.
“He was a good lawyer, so when he filed for divorce, he made sure we got nothing. I couldn’t believe he could do that to his own children, but he did,” the woman told her.
Still looking at George’s grave, Margaret suddenly decided to snap out of it. “How could you?” she whispered. “I thought you were a good man.” She looked at the woman. “What’s your name?”
“Annabel,” the woman replied quietly.
“Annabel,” Margaret said, swallowing her pride. “I’m so sorry for what my husband did to you, especially to your three children. I would have loved to be a mom, and I can’t even begin to imagine what you had to go through because of him. Really, I am sorry.”
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Margaret proceeded to invite the woman to her house. They ate together, and she asked whether or not the woman wanted to work. When she found out she did, Margaret hired her under her firm and decided to help her open up bank accounts for her three children.
“I know I can’t take back the hurt that George caused the four of you. I wish he was still here to suffer the consequences of his disgusting behavior. He isn’t, though, and all I can do is promise to help you take care of your children if you allow me to,” Margaret told Annabel.
Annabel smiled, shyly accepting Margaret’s help. They ended up being good friends, unified in the shared hurt they felt after what George had done to them.
Margaret reflected bitterly about the life she lived with her husband, thinking she had been living a lie all those years. While she was spared George’s villainy when he was alive, she had to live knowing the real George after he was dead, and that still tormented her.
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One day, when Margaret had already retired as a lawyer, she decided to take a trip around the world to clear her mind. When she got home, she was surprised to see white roses blooming in her garden. There was a letter on the ground, which read:
“Because of you, hope bloomed in our lives again. No more thorns, no more sorrow. Thank you, Margaret.”
Margaret smiled, knowing very well it was Annabel who wrote it. She was all too familiar with the handwriting after working with the woman for years. She sighed, finally feeling peace in her heart after everything she’d been through.
What can we learn from this story?
- You can’t truly love someone if you’re dishonest to them. George lived a double life, hiding that he had abandoned his ex-wife and three young children. His second wife, Margaret, never knew about it and had to live the rest of her life knowing her husband had been dishonest with her.
- Help those you can, even when it hurts. Margaret had no obligation to help Annabel and her children, but she wanted to. Although she was reeling after discovering her husband’s double life, she set her feelings aside and decided to help Annabel anyway.
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