No mother

I had already decided that today I would do a post related to Mother's Day for the occasion, and I had a story I found on Facebook about a "Mean mom" teaching her kids manners. I'll still attach that to the end, but something more profound happened to me at work today. 

I had a family come in, dad and two kids, a girl around 7 and a boy around 9. When I asked if they were getting any other chocolates or ice cream, the kids started saying, "Yes please to ice cream! Yes please! Yes please!" I was so amused I started making light conversation with them. Then I asked, "...and did you spoil your mom this morning?" Because usually I get retellings of homemade cards and gooey pancakes. But the girl answered in a sing song voice, "we don't have a mother" and my heart sank. I kept talking with her until her and her brothers attention went elsewhere, and I leaned into the dad and apologized profusely, and he said with wet eyes, "it's ok, just that some of us don't have that privilege..."

I went to the backroom and cried. And then tonight, I called my mom. Even though I had no intention to before. I still feel so unsettled about it. I had no way of knowing, and I didn't mean any insensitivity by it. Could have been a car accident, cancer, or she could have just left for another country, or another man. I have no idea what their story is, or how it continues day to day. Their story pulled my heart strings though, and I wish them the very best.