bed and whispered promises.

“You just keep getting stronger, sweetheart. We’ll be here every step of the way.”

There were nights when I barely slept.

Every alarm made my heart race.

Every medical update seemed to determine whether I could breathe normally again.

When the doctors finally told us Lily was ready to come home, I cried harder than I had expected.

I carried her out of the hospital as though the entire world had finally returned to its proper place.

Our home became a different place after that.

There