They Let a Child Humiliate Me at the Birthday Table—By Morning, the Car Was Gone and Someone Was Knocking

off-key. I see the women who fill my store during events, building each other up instead of tearing each other down.

I see the lilies blooming outside my apartment, brighter than before.

I see myself, alone sometimes—but never lonely. Not really.

I see a life I built with my own two hands, my own name on the paperwork. A life where if someone pours soda continue reading …