OLTL's Baby Switch

I will admit that I am not a loyal viewer of One Life to Live. I know very little about the characters and even less about their background. And I rarely have a chance to watch it in its entirety, but I have been following a few of the story lines in bits and pieces along the way. This baby switch story captivated my attention months ago, primarily because it correlated with Marty's return, another storyline I somehow became interested in. Last week Jessica finally learned that the baby she (and her alter egos) had been taking care of for months was not actually hers, but Starr's. It was difficult to hold back the tears as Jessica discovered that the baby she had given birth to had died, prompting Bess, one of her personalities to switch her baby with the baby Starr had just given birth to. This was a bittersweet revelation in more ways than one. First of all Starr and Cole were elated to find out that the baby they thought had died months ago was in fact alive, but then came the reality that they had already promised to let Michael and Marcie adopt her. One could easily see that Starr was having second thoughts about giving up her baby. As I watched I was torn between who should have baby Hope, Starr or Marcie? Marcie clearly deserves some happiness. She has wanted a baby for so long and after what she had to go through with her last adoption in having to give him up, she should not have to suffer another loss like that.

From what I am hearing and observing it sounds like after Starr reluctantly signs the adoption papers, Marcie realizes how conflicted Starr is and makes the ultimate sacrifice to give Hope back to Starr. I think this was probably the only way this story line could have ended. It is difficult to see Jessica have to give up a baby she thought was hers after losing Nash last year, even if she was technically responsible for switching the babies. The fact that she still has Brody and her other daughter close by, however, does provide reassurance that she will somehow be able to integrate her personalities and live a normal life. It would have been difficult to see Starr and Cole try to move on without their baby, but it would have been equally difficult to see Marcie cope with another missed opportunity to be a mother. At least if the story line plays out like I think it will Marcie will make the decision to give the baby up herself, instead of having her taken away. This seems like the most likely ending because the Marcie and Michael characters are apparently leaving town and will be off the canvas for the foreseeable future.