Her mother was silent for a moment.
“You gave away your pin?”
“Yes.”
“The one you got when you became captain?”
“Yes, Mom.”
Her mother took a breath.
“Then she must have been very special.”
Elena smiled.
“She reminded me of the little girl I used to be.”
Her mother’s voice trembled.
“You know, when you were young, I worried so much about you. I worried that you would struggle. That people would be unkind. That you would work too hard and end up alone.”
Elena looked down.
“Sometimes I did work too hard.”
“I know.”
“And sometimes I am lonely.”
“I know that, too.”
For once, neither of them tried to turn the conversation into a lesson about being grateful or strong.
Her mother simply said, “I hope you know that you don’t have to earn love by accomplishing something extraordinary.”
Elena closed her eyes.
The words landed somewhere deep.
