Man celebrating 18th birthday finds a heartfelt letter stepmother wrote 12 years ago

Stories about stepmothers and stepchildren often focus on conflict, with strained relationships lasting for years. But every once in a while, we find a heartwarming exception. One such example comes from an 18-year-old Reddit user, u/ThrowRAdeimater25, who shared his touching appreciation for his stepmother. The internet quickly fell in love with their story. Just before she married his father 12 years ago, his stepmom gave him a letter to open when he reached adulthood, setting the tone for their deep connection.

He starts by sharing that he calls his stepmom 'mother,' even though they aren’t related by blood. His biological mother passed away giving birth to him, and his father raised him alone until he remarried. “They got married months after my sixth birthday and had four more children. My (step)mother always treated me like her own and never made me feel like an outsider or a 'half'-sibling. I was always her son and a big brother to all my siblings,” he wrote.

The son, who recently turned 18, was surprised by his 39-year-old mother's emotional letter. “I spent the afternoon with my family and went to a party with my friends in the evening. When I got back home, everyone was already asleep, and there was an envelope on my pillow. I opened it, and it was a letter my mom had written to my 18-year-old self the day before she married my father,” the post read. The letter started with a humble acknowledgment from his stepmother, suggesting that she was never going to “dishonor” the memory of his biological mother.

The letter also featured some of the promises she intended to keep as the boy grew up. "She promised to kiss my forehead every morning before I got on the school bus, she promised to always encourage my interests and would try her hardest to come to every practice and game of mine, she promised to never differentiate between me and any potential future siblings in any way and many more beautiful promises," he added.

“You’re an 18-year-old now - an adult and are hopefully heading to college soon and you no longer have any formal reason to maintain a relationship with me, but I truly hope that in these last 12 years, I was able to be a loving mother and fulfill all my promises to you and I can only hope that you will continue to give me the privilege of being your mom because you will always be my son. I love you,” the letter ended. The envelope also had a picture of the mother-son duo clicked by his father when the now-college student was three years old.

After reading the letter at 4 a.m., the man cried while reminiscing about his mother’s role in raising him. He concluded his post by asking the community how he could show his mother he was grateful for her presence and love. People on the platform shared their views. u/Hiker2190 wrote, “What a wonderful woman and what a wonderful young man. You take that note to her, you hug her and you tell her that you could not have asked for a better mom.” u/Lucy-La-Loca remarked, “This is a true inspiration to all stepparents and children. My dad married his second wife when I was 13, which is usually a tough age, and she became my friend and counselor. My dad passed away in 1999, and she is still in my life. My mom and she get along great!”

In an update, the son shared that he told his mother in the morning that he was proud to be her son. They both cried as the son, who was legally adopted at the age of 10, told his stepmother that their relationship did not end there. The son further made a list of to-dos for his mother to feel special. “I’m planning to take her to the zoo and recreate the zoo photo and I want to give her some kind of jewelry,” he shared. For now, he has decided to spend some time with his family before starting college.