I shared a story about how she drew a fake award certificate for the hospital’s least comfortable chair and persuaded a nurse to put it on the wall.

They laughed.

Nobody treated me as fragile.

Nobody asked about the inheritance.

Walking home, I realized the dinner had not taken anything from her memory.

It had added another small piece to the life I was still allowed to lead.

I began saying yes to more invitations.

Some evenings I still declined.