When I was 19, I married Mark and was lucky enough to become Jessica’s stepmother. She was four years old at the time. I remember looking at her sweet face whenever she was asleep in my arms and thinking how her porcelain-colored skin and her perfect little face made her look like a China doll. Her mother, Karen, had been in the background of my life for years. Her first job was at the bank where my mom worked, and my mom threw her baby shower when she was pregnant with Jessica. Karen and I were both so young. We tried intermittently to be friendly and kind with each other. I remember her coming over to help me paint Jessica’s room from yellow to pink. We had a lighthearted day with conversation and laughter. I must admit, though, as time went on, I was judgy and hard on her. By the time Jessica was 8 years old, she gained a brother and a sister. Coincidentally, Brian, my son, and Nicole, Karen’s daughter, were born just 6 weeks apart. (See the picture of Jessica on our living room couch, one newborn sibling on either side of her.) The following year, Mark and I separated and eventually we divorced. For a while, Jessica came to visit our family regularly. Sometime later, though, her parents were reunited for a period of time, and I didn’t feel my ongoing presence in her life was beneficial. Her little family was complete. I think now that I was mistaken. How I wish I could go back. Over the next 25 years, I saw Jessica sporadically. Brian kept me up on what was happening in her life. He and his dad traveled to see her in Alabama whenever they could. She had moved there after high school, and I know she loved living near her momma and her sister. I recently met her two best friends there as well. She made lots of trips here to California and several to Utah after her dad moved there. Often, her dad’s siblings and their kids, my son and his family would all go join them in Utah for family time while Jessica was visiting. I saw their pictures on Facebook. Utah is beautiful and the family time looked amazing. It was during her trips to visit family in California that I remember her best. She came to our house several times and brought her sweet children. She was always open and shared all the juicy details of her life story. I loved her transparency! The love and trust and authenticity of her storytelling was captivating. She had a way of being that made it feel like no time between us had gone by… (To be continued.)