‘Happy Birthday, Mommy!’ Boy Greets 60-Year-Old Neighbor Who Raised Him as Her Own Child — Story of the Day

When Jackson’s mother died, he was taken in by his next-door neighbor, who was a close friend of his late mother. Jackson never liked Mrs. Herring, but on her 60th birthday, something happened, and he called her ‘Mommy’ for the first time.

The Herrings were a large, happy family, unlike Jackson’s previous home, which had only him and his mother, Lydia. Unfortunately, his father had died many years ago, and since none of his relatives stepped forward to care for him after Lydia’s death, Mrs. Herrings took him in.

“Your mother and I knew each other for years, boy,” she had told him when she applied for his custody. “I’d hate to see you grow up in that foster care system, Jackson. I truly would.”

But Jackson didn’t like Mrs. Herring or her big family, which included her several children and grandchildren living in a cozy house in their neighborhood. For one thing, he had no privacy at the Herring house. Also, the place was chaotic all the time except at night.

But then he had heard terrible stories about foster homes and shelters where orphans lived, and he had told the social worker that he felt safe in Mrs. Herring’s home. However, as time passed, Jackson started hating the lively atmosphere of the house.

One day, he was playing video games with his friend, Rob, when Mrs. Herring’s younger grandchildren stormed into his room and demanded that he let them join the game.

“Back off, kids!” Jackson said, irritated. “Can’t you at least knock before coming in?”

“Stacey and I both want to play, Jackson!” 6-year-old Ted said. “Please?”

“They’re so annoying! I’m done. Hey, Rob, let’s go to your house. I can’t even get peace and quiet here!” And off Jackson went to Rob’s house.

Dinners were equally noisy in the big household, and one night, Jackson didn’t want to leave his room and join everyone for dinner because they had guests over.

“Jackson,” Mr. Herring called out to him from downstairs. “Come and join us, kid!”

Jackson heard Mr. Herring, but he pretended he didn’t and wore his headphones to avoid them. That’s when Mr. Herring came to his room.

“Jackson?” he asked, and this time Jackson had to take his headphones off. “Hey, I’ve been calling you for minutes now! You’re not coming?”

“I’m not hungry,” he said flatly. “I was just gonna go to sleep.”

“Well, you can go to sleep but not with an empty stomach, boy. We promised your mother we’d look after you, and she’d definitely hate this. We have your favorite grilled chicken salad. Come down soon, alright?”

Frowning, Jackson went downstairs and joined everyone. He had to greet everyone even though he...