After 3 Boys, We Gave Up Our Dream of a Daughter—Then My Husband Called Me to the Hospital and Said, “There’s a Baby Here”

He nodded.

And for once, neither of us tried to turn grief into something pretty.

We simply carried it with us.

EPILOGUE — THE NAME I PICKED AT NINETEEN

Years later, Maya asked why her baby book began with a hospital bracelet instead of a photograph of me pregnant.

She was old enough to notice differences.

Young enough that the answer still needed to be simple.

We were sitting on the living-room floor.