I laughed.

“Especially then.

We’ll learn.”

Lucy asked whether we could invite Uncle David, an old family friend, to help with the porch swing.

Megan suggested making a list of things we wanted to repair ourselves.

It was the first evening the children began imagining the house as ours again instead of worrying about what Oliver planned to change.

We started with the garage.

The metal shelving came down.

The old boxes were sorted.

Sarah’s cedar chest remained safe.