She took a heavy metal date stamp out of her pocket.

She pressed the stamp onto the bottom corner of the page.

I listened to the sound of the social worker’s stamp hitting the final termination page.

Ms.

Higgins stamped the third page and separated the thin yellow carbon copy from the white original.

“You’re officially discharged into the custody of the state,” Ms.

Higgins said.

She slid the white pages into a heavy manila envelope, folded the metal clasp down, and pressed it flat with her thumb.