{"id":10636,"date":"2026-02-20T16:11:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:11:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=10636"},"modified":"2026-02-20T16:11:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:11:13","slug":"man-is-certain-his-wife-died-3-years-ago-accidentally-meets-her-on-vacation-story-of-the-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=10636","title":{"rendered":"Man Is Certain His Wife Died 3 Years Ago, Accidentally Meets Her on Vacation \u2013 Story of the Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A man is stunned when three years after his wife\u2019s death, he and his little daughter recognize her while away on vacation.Sam Jordan was still reeling from the loss of his lovely wife, Jenny, in a horrific car accident. Jenny had passed away three years before, leaving Sam to raise their little two-year-old daughter Mia alone.Life had become a nightmare for Sam, dealing with his own grief and Mia\u2019s. It took him over three years before he finally felt that he and Mia had achieved what could be loosely termed as a \u2018normal\u2019 life. And that was when he decided to take Mia on vacation.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/header>\n
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Sam decided that a two-week getaway to sunny California would be a welcome break from their Colorado hometown. He found a nice B&B in Venice Beach, close to the ocean, and a lively colorful place Mia might enjoy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Father and daughter quickly adapted to the leisurely rhythm of vacationland and settled into a daily routine of going to the beach in the morning, having lunch, then sightseeing in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

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Then, one afternoon, something extraordinary happened. Sam and Mia had stopped for ice cream when the now five-year-old cried, \u201cDaddy, it\u2019s MOMMY!\u201d And in seconds Mia was gone, weaving through the crowd in the boardwalk.<\/p>\n

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Sam dropped the ice cream and started running after Mia, and caught up with her 100 meters away. \u201cMia!\u201d he gasped, \u201cYou know you can\u2019t run away from daddy!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cBut daddy, it\u2019s mommy!\u201d Mia panted breathlessly, \u201cShe\u2019s right there!\u201d And Mia pointed at a couple standing a little further along looking at some handicrafts.<\/p>\n

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Sam dropped to his feet and took Mia\u2019s little hands in his. \u201cHoney, you know mommy\u2019s gone to heaven\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But Mia shook her head stubbornly. \u201cNo daddy, I recognized mommy from the picture on my wall. That\u2019s mommy!\u201d Sam was about to explain once again that Jenny was gone when the woman Mia had pointed out turned around.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The heart knows where it belongs.<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
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Sam felt as if all the air in his body had been punched out of his body. It was Jenny! Or someone who was her twin! Sam was on his feet and moving towards the woman, taking Mia by the hand.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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When they were just a few feet away, Mia broke free and threw her arms around the woman\u2019s waist. \u201cMommy!\u201d she cried. \u201cOh mommy! I knew it was you!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The woman looked down at Mia and frowned, then she looked up at Sam and a bewildered expression flitted across her lovely face. Sam was about to apologize when the man standing next to her turned around.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It was Clive! His best friend Clive whom he hadn\u2019t seen since Jenny\u2019s funeral. \u201cClive,\u201d he cried. \u201cMan, you wouldn\u2019t believe\u2026\u201d But something was very wrong because Clive looked terrified and grabbed the arm of the woman who looked like Jenny.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe have to go!\u201d he screamed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The woman who looked like Jenny looked surprised. \u201cSam, what\u2019s the matter?\u201d she asked Clive. Sam? She thought Clive was SAM? Sam stepped forward and laid a heavy hand on Clive\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWhat\u2019s going on here, Clive? Who is this\u2026lady?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The woman who looked like Jenny smiled. \u201cI\u2019m Sam\u2019s wife,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m Jenny.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Mia, who still had her arms around the woman\u2019s waist, cried triumphantly. \u201cYou see daddy, it IS mommy!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cMommy?\u201d the woman said, touching Mia\u2019s face gently. \u201cI wish I were! I always wanted a little girl\u2026I was going to call her\u2026Mia.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cI\u2019m Mia!\u201d the child said. \u201cAnd you\u2019re my mommy, and THAT is my daddy!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Clive was pale as death and trying to squirm out of Sam\u2019s iron grasp. \u201cIt\u2019s not what you think!\u201d he cried. \u201cI didn\u2019t plan it, it just happened\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWhat happened?\u201d Sam asked.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cAfter the accident\u2026You know the car was so burned\u2026 We had the funeral\u2026\u201d Clive said. \u201cThen one night I was watching a late-night missing persons show and they showed the photo of a woman who\u2019d been found. It was Jenny! She\u2019d had some kind of brain injury\u2026She didn\u2019t remember who she was, but doctors thought from the injuries and the burns she\u2019d been in a bad crash. Then I remembered how Jenny was always picking up those young girls who hitchhiked\u2026 I guess that\u2019s who died in the car, and Jenny was thrown clear.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you come to me?\u201d cried Sam angrily, \u201cMia and I were mourning her, we were in such pain!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Clive couldn\u2019t look Sam in the eyes. \u201cI loved Jenny. You knew it when you started dating her. You TOOK her from me, so I took her back\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Jenny was listening to this in horrified silence. \u201cYou\u2026You told me you were my husband,\u201d she gasped. \u201cYou said my dreams about a baby girl were fantasy\u2026YOU LIED TO ME!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Clive was cringing from her anger, and Sam calmly dialed 911 and called the police. Later, he sat with Jenny and Mia and started sorting through the mess one man\u2019s obsession had made of their lives.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Sam explained to Mia that mommy would probably take a long time to remember everything, and urged Jenny to be patient too. Jenny just smiled.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThese three years I always felt that something was WRONG. Sam \u2014 I mean Clive \u2014 told me I loved him, that he was my husband, but something wasn\u2019t\u2026right.\u201d She reached for Sam and Mia\u2019s hands. \u201cNow it feels as if the world is finally coming right again!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And bit by bit, it did.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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What can we learn from this story?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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  • The heart knows where it belongs.\u00a0<\/strong>Even though Clive told Jenny that he was her husband, some instinct told her something wasn\u2019t right.<\/li>\n
  • Never give up hope, because happiness can walk back into your life.<\/strong>\u00a0Sam had resigned himself to his loneliness when he found his wife again.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    A man is stunned when three years after his wife\u2019s death, he and his little daughter recognize her while away on vacation.Sam Jordan was still reeling from the loss of … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10637,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,22,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-family","category-inspiration","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10636","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10636"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10636\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10638,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10636\/revisions\/10638"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10636"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10636"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10636"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}