Chapter 18 - The Photo That Went Viral
Three years after the original baby shower, Rachel posted a photograph with my permission.
It showed Lily standing beneath the pavilion.
Linda was kneeling beside her.
Both were covered in pink frosting.
This time, they had been decorating cupcakes.
Daniel stood behind them laughing.
I was beside him.
And my hand rested over another very pregnant belly.
The caption contained only six words:
Some families learn. Some families heal.
The photograph spread faster than I expected.
People recognized us.
The comments flooded in.
But I didn't spend hours reading them.
I had learned that strangers could witness your life without being allowed to define it.
Then came the question everyone wanted answered.
Boy or girl?
We hadn't told anyone.
Not even Linda.
At the baby shower, we placed another cake beneath the pavilion.
Linda stood far away from it with both hands dramatically behind her back.
Everyone laughed.
Daniel cut the cake.
Pink.
Another girl.
For half a second, I watched Linda.
She put both hands over her mouth.
Then she cried.
Happy tears.
She hugged me carefully.
“Another granddaughter.”
“Yes.”
She looked at Daniel.
“You lucky man.”
Daniel kissed my temple.
“I know.”
And just like that, the sentence that once destroyed a celebration was replaced by another.
Not “My son deserved a boy.”
But:
May you like
“You lucky man.”
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