It was the rescue of it.

I was reclaiming the capacity to be generous by choice, to people who deserved it, rather than being drained by obligation, by people who despised me for the draining.

True generosity requires the freedom to say no; a gift that cannot be withheld is not a gift but a tribute, and I had been paying tribute for years and calling it love.

Chapter 6 — My Budget for You Ran Out