After her husband abandoned her, a pregnant mother of three must sell her stroller in order to provide for her children. Anne Sargent sobbed while sitting on her kitchen floor. The only time she could let herself express her anguish was after midnight, when her three kids were sleeping upstairs. Anne put a gentle stroke on the infant’s belly as she felt her move. She apologized in a hushed voice to her unborn child. “Even if I am trying my hardest, it is not good enough.”
Anne had been a radially happy woman and mother just two months earlier, certain of her place in the world and her husband’s affection, and confidently anticipated the arrival of her fourth child. The woman has vanished. One evening, Derek had just told her he was going when he got home. But why, Anne questioned. “I thought we were happy, I do not understand!”
“You seemed content!” Derek started crying. “You, not me! You just had children and fussed over them; now there is a new one on the way.” “Yet you desired to have kids!” Anne objected. “Each time I became pregnant, you were content.”
Mutual respect and understanding are the foundation of a family. “Happy?” Derek exclaimed. “Happy that you showered the children with love and attention? To you, I was just another paycheck! That is over now, though. Derek left three months after Anne revealed that she was expecting her fourth child. Without delay, Anne went out and secured a part-time position at a nearby grocery store. The owner was eager to offer her a full-time position, but Anne carefully stretched her salary because she would have had to pay for a sitter for her three boys, which would have taken up the most of it. However, it was insufficient even with the child support check that Derek mailed.
For several months, Anne was able to cover her utility costs by starting to sell some antique crockery that she had inherited from her grandmother. Subsequently, she liquidated a silver brush and mirror set that she had owned since her childhood, enabling her to pay for groceries. As her belly grew, Anne gradually had to sell her valuables in order to provide food and safety for her family. One day, everything was reduced to just bric-a-brac for sale. Everything more valuable was lost. Upon bringing the old stroller up from the cellar, Anne had a closer look at it.
She had owned it since she was a newborn, and her children had each used it in turn. Even though it was quite old—likely from the 1960s—it was like new. Biting back her tears, she stroked her fingers over the painted roses on the side. She needed the money even more than she needed it for the new baby. She considered going to the flea market and getting a fair price for it. Antiques have long been in style… She then brought the stroller to the flea market, where she was paid $50 for it by a vendor.