My husband pushed me down the stairs, and as I lay shattered at the bottom, my mother-in-law called my father and said, “Come get your worthless daughter and take her back.” Dad gave her only one warning: “If she has so much as a scratch, your family will answer for it.” They laughed at him because they had absolutely no idea who my father truly was.
We invited a few school friends and the people who had helped us settle back into ordinary life.
Denise sent a card.
Agnes brought a small potted sunflower.
Meredith arrived with cupcakes and told me she was glad I had called her back.
I had worried the party would feel too small compared with the elaborate birthdays at the Callahan estate.
There were no hired performers or custom decorations.
We hung paper circles from the porch roof, and the cake leaned slightly to the left.
Lily declared it perfect.
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