I planned a trip with Mom to reconnect, just like when I was little.

“It feels just as beautiful as I remember,” I said. We camped near a lake, made cocoa, and talked by the fire. But the peace was short-lived. On a forest walk, I slipped down a slope, hit my head, and blacked out.I woke up in a hospital, confused. Then I overheard Mom telling a doctor, *“I’m not Carly’s biological mother… please don’t tell her.”* My world shattered. I confronted her, and passed out again from the stress.

Later, Dad explained, *“Your real mother left. She (Mom) raised you like her own because she loved you.”* I was heartbroken, but needed time to understand.
My condition worsened, and I heard the last words before blacking out: *“We need to find a donor, immediately.”I woke up again—alive. “Where’s Mom?” I asked.
Dad, crying, said, *“Right now, your mother’s heart is beating inside you.”I found a note: *“You have always been my daughter… Every time you feel your heartbeat, remember I love you.”She didn’t give birth to me—but she gave me life. I will cherish every beat of my heart, for her.