I repeated that sentence silently while Noah slept.

I wanted him to learn it before he ever learned to be afraid of disappointing me.

PART 5

At the farmhouse, Aunt Beatrice had placed a padded chair beside a ground-floor bedroom and moved a small dresser close enough for me to reach with one hand.

Noah’s bassinet stood beside the bed.

She had not filled the room with expensive gifts.

She had filled it with things we could use.