A Lily in the Light

by Kristin Fields

“Think of it this way,” he said finally. “Good people can do bad things, and bad people can do good things, so maybe it depends on the choices we make. Even good people can do bad things for good reasons.”

“It gets different,” Amelia said softly. “Not necessarily better, but different. You still have the world ahead of you, Esme. I promise.”

Shouldn’t her father be filming like he did for special occasions, that boxy camera pressed into his shoulder, face scrunched behind the eyepiece? She was not used to doing special things alone, but the wood was there beneath her fingertips, cool and reassuring.

“But that’s the beauty of it, too, Esme. If he doesn’t tell us what it means, then we decide. So maybe that is what it means, if that’s what it means to you.”