The hardest part was that she never complained.
Sophie had been asking for the beach since before her brother was born.
That afternoon, I finally said yes.
She stared at me like she thought I was joking.
Then she ran for her sandals.
While I packed, she grabbed burp cloths and Oliver’s hat without being asked. She had been like that since he came home. Quietly useful. Too understanding. Too careful with me.
That beach trip was not just a beach trip to me.
The hardest part was that she never complained. She didn’t slam doors or say the baby had ruined everything. She just stopped asking for things twice. She poured her own cereal in the mornings because my hands were always full. She stopped asking for bedtime stories on the nights Oliver would not settle. A week earlier I had found her in the laundry room trying to match her own socks because she did not want to wake the baby by calling for me.
That beach trip was not just a beach trip to me.
It was proof I hadn’t lost sight of her.
