We listen first.

At their final joint session, the therapist asked each of them to write down a single sentence — just one — that held whatever they had learned in the long, hard passage from that day in the hospital to this one.

Martha wrote: Asking your child how they feel is useless if you have built a home where they are terrified to tell you the truth.

Mark wrote: Protecting your family means being honest, even when the honesty destroys your pride.