There was a new level of planning behind activities that had once required almost none.
But there was also breakfast.
Card games.
Sibling arguments.
Wet swimsuits hanging over chairs.
Bad jokes from Grandpa.
Finn asking for snacks five minutes after claiming he wasn’t hungry.
His diagnosis changed the family’s routines.
It did not replace his childhood.
Before we left North Carolina, Lydia and I returned to the rental house together to gather the last of our things.
The place looked exactly as it had before the hospital.
Sand near the doorway.
Towels over the railing.
