Such a deliberate act; at any point he could have changed his mind, stood and walked away—twelve years old and already weary of the life he had with us. It’s a terrible thing to lose a child. Many women endure it and many more will long after I am gone. Some become weak and frail from such a blow, but not me. I became hard, as if a layer of armor grew over my skin—some impenetrable ancient alligator.
