Now I understood that a family was more than the relationship between two adults.
It was the truth we told our children.
The safety we gave them.
The example we set about what love should and should not require.
And if I wanted my children to understand that they deserved honesty and respect, I had to be willing to demand those things for myself.
The following morning, Margaret accompanied me to meet a lawyer.
Her name was Susan Bennett, and she had been recommended by a family friend who had gone through a difficult divorce several years earlier.
Susan listened without interrupting while I explained the situation.
She reviewed the property records, the inheritance documents, and the financial information Margaret had organized.
Then she asked several questions about the history of the house, our marriage, and the arrangements Tyler and I had made when we purchased the property.
I answered as carefully as I could.
