I adopted a five-year-old girl I found wrapped in my late daughter’s jacket – years later, she handed me a note and said, “Your daughter asked me to give this to you today.”

things whenever she was “helping.”

Lily had planned to ask me to take a walk with her after church the next morning.

If she lost her nerve, she wanted the note somewhere only I would eventually find it, when I finally fixed that stupid pocket for her.

My hands shook so badly the paper rattled.

Lily felt trapped. She wanted a gap year.

Then came the part continue reading …