I listened without interrupting. Then I told Bernadine that understanding her childhood didn’t mean Jonah deserved to experience the same treatment. She lowered her eyes and nodded. “I know,” she whispered. “When I saw his empty plate, I remembered myself. I just didn’t know how to stop.”
That evening, she called Jonah. She apologized for making him feel unimportant and promised to treat him differently. Jonah accepted her apology with the innocence only a child can offer. Before hanging up, he asked whether she would visit us for Christmas. Bernadine began crying again, but this time they were happy tears.
