The relationship between grandmothers and their grandchildren is always special. To maintain this unique bond, grandmothers will do anything to provide love, patience, wisdom, fun and support to their grandchildren. Charleston’s grandmother, Doris, also wanted to do something special for her beloved granddaughter, Alisa.
As she thought about how to make her granddaughter happy, she remembered that her 82nd birthday was coming up. So Doris decided to throw a beautiful garden party in the park. But the only obstacle she faces is that she doesn’t have enough money for the occasion.
Doris doesn’t want to ask her son Kevin or her daughter Ella for money because she feels it’s unfair to burden them with unnecessary expenses. So she decided to look for a job…
The grandmother was turned away from almost every doorstep she reached, begging for a job. People felt she was too old to work and would not hire her.
She finally turned her fortunes around when a local school principal was moved by her story and hired her as a janitor. It was the only position available, and the grandmother was assigned a hallway near the lobby to sweep and clean.
Doris was thrilled, thinking she would save enough money in two months for the party. After her husband died 20 years ago, she lived alone in her small house a block from her son and daughter, so whenever Kevin saw his mother out and about in an unusual way, he began to get curious.
“Mom, where are you going? Aren’t you supposed to be resting? You said your legs hurt,” he asked Doris after seeing her out one day. Because she wanted to surprise everyone, Doris lied to Kevin.
“Son, I’m fine now. I just wanted to take a walk in the park,” she lied.
Kevin believed her.
Doris worked to earn enough money for the party. Unlike the other employees at the school who were paid monthly, she was paid weekly.
The school had advertised for a janitorial position and wanted to keep Doris as a substitute until they hired a full-time cleaner. For the next two months, the grandmother worked hard to save money. She was happy to do it and never complained about anything.
One day, she noticed an unusual commotion in the hallway. It turned out to be the school’s prom. The area where Doris works leads to the venue of the event.
Doris ne savait pas qu’Alisa était en dernière année et qu’elle allait participer à l’événement. La jeune fille était en vacances et venait de retourner à l’école, sans savoir que sa grand-mère y était femme de ménage.
A little later, Alisa arrived with her father and aunt. She noticed that the children were making fun of an old lady and came over to see.
“Grandma?!”, Alisa shouted, “What are you doing here, and why are you holding a mop?”
The kids around burst out laughing and started teasing Alisa and her grandmother.
“Hey, look, our future prom queen’s grandmother is a janitor at our school,” someone said.
“No way, man… I’m not going to dance with a janitor’s granddaughter!” another boy added.
Alisa was embarrassed. She ran tearfully to her father, who was about to drive home.
“Dad, let’s go home… I don’t want to stay here even for a minute,” she sobbed.
Kevin and his sister were shocked.
“What happened, honey?” he asked. “You’ve been preparing for this event for months. Why are you crying?” the father asked.
He heard a burst of laughter coming from the hallway, and before he could get out to check, he saw a slight figure approaching him with a mop.
” Mom???”, Kevin yelled. “What the hell are you doing in that uniform? Put that thing down. Put it down and stay there. Stay away from us.”
“Has she gone crazy?”, added Ella, “Mom, what is wrong with you?”
Doris was hurt after hearing her children’s words.
“But darlings, I was just trying to save money for….”
Kevin was far from just angry.
“Shut up, Mom! Just stand there and don’t talk. You should have told us you were working here. What was the need for you to work as a maid? You are a disgrace to us. Don’t ever talk to me again!”
The three of them sped off in their car, leaving Doris heartbroken and speechless. Deep down, she hoped her son would forgive her and understand if she explained. But she had no idea what would happen next.
Doris withdrew her last paycheck and quit her job. Since she had saved up enough money to throw the party, she didn’t want to work anymore. She was also hurt by the way the kids made fun of her, so she didn’t want to go back to work and bring more shame to her granddaughter.
In an attempt to fix things, Doris went to see her son and granddaughter the next day. She dreamed that Kevin would hug her and tell her he was sorry for being so hard on her. But it was nothing short of heartbreaking when Kevin slammed the door in his mother’s face and told her never to see him again.
“That’s enough, Mom… I don’t want you to come over again and hurt my daughter more. She’s already disappointed with what happened yesterday, and I don’t want you to add to it,” Kevin gets angry.
“But son, I came to invite you all to my 82nd birthday party tomorrow,” Doris says tearfully. “I’ve arranged a little party on our favorite lawn in the park… I’ll be expecting you at 9 a.m… Please don’t disappoint me,” she cried and walked away.
The next day, on her birthday, Doris went to the park and found a clean, bright spot on the lawn. She carried heavy baskets of food and mats for the occasion. She arranged everything and topped it with her birthday cake box.
Doris waited for an hour, looking for her son and his family, but they never came. People walking by the picnic facility were curious. They would stop and look around before going back to their business.
Poor Grandma Doris had her eyes fixed on the main gate of the park. It was already 2 p.m., and she had been waiting for her family for over five hours in the hot sun.
“Please, Jesus, I pray that they will come,” she prayed tearfully, her eyes fixed on the main gate.
Moments later, she spotted the silhouette of a family approaching the main door and ran toward them as fast as her frail legs could carry her.
“Kevin? Is that you?” the grandmother asks anxiously as she reaches for a stranger’s shoulder. “Alisa, my darling. I knew you wouldn’t disappoint your grandmother.”
She ran after them to hug them but was heavily disappointed. It wasn’t Kevin and Alisa.
“I’m, I’m so sorry. I thought you were my son and granddaughter,” she apologized and turned back in tears.
Doris waited a few more minutes before she started packing her things. She packed everything up and headed to her son’s house, hoping to celebrate the long-awaited birthday party. With a heavy heart, she was about to reach for the doorbell when the door creaked open with Kevin on the other side.
“Son, I’ve been waiting for you for a very long time,” she cried, looking at Kevin. But he ignored her and walked away.
“Won’t you forgive me? I wanted to surprise my granddaughter with her favorite cake for my birthday. I also made your favorite sausage and pie. I wanted to throw this party myself, which is why I worked as a janitor at the school. I’m sorry, son. I should have told you sooner.”
Kevin was still furious with his mother. He wasn’t ready to listen to her again.
“Because of you, Alisa’s prom was ruined. Only because of what you did, Mom. How can you easily ask me to forgive you for ruining my daughter’s happiness?”
“Why are you talking to her?” ranted Ella. “Mom, please go away. You are a disgrace to us. Please don’t come here until we call you.”
Alisa heard her father and aunt yelling at Doris and ran outside.
“Enough! Stop it, both of you!” she yelled, hugging her grandmother. “Stop yelling at grandma. Those boys were monsters who didn’t know how to treat a lady. You are no different than them if you don’t know how to treat your mother!”
Kevin and Ella were stunned by the young girl’s words.
“Grandma, I missed you so much! I came to your house yesterday to apologize, but the house was locked. I tried to call you, but you had left your phone at our house,” Alisa cried.
“Come on, let’s go. I don’t want to stay here another minute… And Dad, don’t call me. I don’t want to talk to you or see you. I hate you for hurting Grandma. She’s more precious than all the money and diamonds you have. You can win back possessions and a reputation, but you can’t win back such a loving grandmother.”
At that moment, Kevin realized his mistake. He wasn’t ready to let his daughter go. Moreover, he felt ashamed that he had hurt his poor mother instead of appreciating the efforts she had made to make her daughter happy.
Kevin ran after his mother and daughter and hugged them. He burst into tears and begged Doris to forgive him.
“I’m sorry, Mom. I got carried away trying to maintain my reputation in society. I should have realized that no job is big or small, clean or dirty. I failed to recognize your good heart. My love of prestige and my daughter kept me from seeing your love and sacrifice. I’m sorry,” Kevin sobbed.
“Please forgive us, Mom,” Ella said.
Doris hugged them and was moved to tears. Alisa carried the food baskets inside and set everything up for her grandmother’s birthday.
As Doris blew on her birthday cake, the family took beautiful pictures, and their house rang with laughter. Kevin realized his mistake and asked his mother to move in with them. Although Doris was reluctant, she could not refuse and happily moved in.
From that day on, Doris and Alisa are inseparable. Rumor has it that the grandmother decided to save money for her 83rd birthday party and started her baking class in the neighborhood.
Bravo, Granny Doris!
