Sometimes, I still feel afraid.
Sometimes, I don’t recognize the woman in the mirror.
But then Ethan appears at my door, messy hair, dinosaur pajamas.
“Mom… are you still here?”
And I always answer the same way:
“Yes, baby. I’m still here.”
Because some people will try to bury you before your time.
Some families betray you with the same mouths that say “I love you.”
But sometimes—
a child becomes the light in the darkness.
And sometimes—
a mother opens her eyes…
and comes back.
