Down in the yard, Daisy called out my name, waving happily for me to come join them by the stream.

I looked down at my beautiful, resilient family.

The road back home was waiting for us beyond the trees, wet with fresh evening rain and gleaming softly in the fading daylight.

I could never go back and rewrite what had happened on that mountain five years ago, and I could never reclaim the years that had been stolen by silence and secrets.

But I had the power to choose what came next for my family.

I turned, walked down the wooden porch steps, and headed toward my daughters.

For the very first time since the storm, I didn’t look back.

THE END.