“I know who you are,” Emma said, looking directly at Carolyn.
“Grandma and Grandpa have pictures of you all over the house.”
“They do?” Carolyn asked, surprised.
“You’re still their daughter,” Emma said matter-of-factly. “Just like I’m still your daughter, even though you couldn’t keep me.”
The wisdom in her young voice brought fresh tears to Carolyn’s eyes.
She kneeled before Emma, careful not to crowd her.
“I don’t expect anything. I just want to know you, if you’ll let me,” Carolyn said.
Slowly, Emma smiled.
“I’d like that. And I already know Tim from school. He’s pretty cool, for a boy.”
Tim, who had been hovering uncertainly in the doorway, grinned at this backhanded compliment.
As I watched them — Carolyn, Emma, Tim, and the grandparents who had bridged an impossible gap — I saw a broken family begin to mend.
Tim gained a sister that day.
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