Chapter 9
The zoo party was perfect.
Lily ran ahead, pointing at every animal, her grandparents walking right beside her. They held her hand when she climbed the steps to the giraffe feeding platform. They laughed when she got sprayed by the elephant exhibit. They cheered loudest when she blew out her candles.
My mother-in-law even wore the drawing Lily had given her, taped carefully to the front of her jacket.
Later, when the other kids had gone home, we sat on the grass watching the sun set.
Sarah was there too. She brought her new puppy, and Lily spent twenty minutes rolling around with it.
My father-in-law turned to me. “We were so afraid of losing our way. Of losing what we thought was ‘right.’ But we almost lost everything that actually mattered.”
My husband nodded. “All that matters is that we’re together. That we respect each other.”
That night, as we walked back to the car, Lily grabbed all four of our hands.
“Look,” she said. “We’re all holding hands. Just like in my picture.”
We looked down. Five hands linked together. Different sizes. Different stories. But all holding on tight.
May you like
I felt tears sting my eyes.
We’d come so far. But we’d made it.
