On the morning of her wedding to my stepdad Richard, my mom vanished without a trace. Richard raised me, and I grew up resenting her for abandoning me. Years later, while planning my own wedding to Michael—a man who reminded everyone of Richard—I stumbled upon a shocking discovery. At a random garage sale, I found my mother’s wedding dress, the very one she disappeared in, with her name stitched inside. The man running the sale revealed it once belonged to his father, Charles, and gave me an old letter with an address.

I drove to the address and was stunned to meet a man who turned out to be my half-brother. He told me our mom was alive but living in a nursing home with Charles, the man she truly loved. When I visited, I found her sitting with him, both lost in their fading memories. Though she didn’t recognize me, she had left behind a letter explaining why she ran away—she couldn’t marry Richard because she didn’t love him and didn’t want me to make the same mistake by marrying out of comfort instead of love.

My heart broke as I read her words. She had tried to return for me, but my grandmother turned her away, lying that I hated her. Mom regretted leaving me every day and hoped I would choose love over safety in my own life. In tears, I forgave her, even though she couldn’t fully understand who I was anymore.

In that moment, I knew I couldn’t go through with my wedding. I decided I would only marry someone I truly loved. Kneeling beside my mom, I promised her—and myself—that I would live for love, just as she had, no matter how unpredictable life turned out to be.