MY DAUGHTER WAS THRILLED TO HOLD HER NEWBORN SISTER, UNTIL SHE WHISPERED ONE WORD THAT SHOOK ME TO MY CORE!

The Weeks That Followed

After that day, I made a point to check in. A nod in the hallway. A quiet moment at lunch. I didn’t pry — just made sure he knew someone saw him.

At first, he barely spoke. Then slowly, the walls began to lower. One afternoon, sitting across from me, he asked, “Have you ever been scared to go home?”

The question stopped me cold.

I told him the truth — about my own childhood, about fear that lived in the corners of the night. I told him that fear doesn’t mean weakness. Sometimes it’s your body’s way of saying you still want to live.Continue reading…