“I kept the collar, Mom.”

That was all. I sat down at my kitchen table and held that frame until my fingers went numb. I didn’t cry. I think I was too relieved for that.

He didn’t forgive me, not really, but he didn’t throw it away either. We are going to have dinner this Sunday. I don’t know what we are going to talk about, but for the first time in forty years, I feel like I might be able to look him in the eye without feeling like a stranger. I am still a tired old woman, but the house feels a little bit quieter in a way that doesn’t hurt quite so much anymore.