He woke up to sunlight and the smell of coffee, a smell he loved, wafting up the stairs. Realizing his wife was home he ran toward the stairs – he mustn’t have heard her arrive home after an all night flight. She’d been gone for so long. Too long.

Flying down the stairs two at a time he looked forward to a long hug and then hours spent pouring over pictures.

He walked into the kitchen, shocked to see his daughter, a photocopy of her mother at that age, sitting at the island.

“Daddy, you have to accept that she’s not coming back.”