I whispered into the empty cemetery. It was just me and hundreds of headstones. “It’s me. I’m here.” I leaned over, placing the bouquet of yellow mums on her headstone. Mums had always been her favorite. It was the same arrangement I’d purchased the day of her funeral. My behavior at the time may have been reprehensible, but I had thought to honor my mom with her favorite flowers, even then. It was a small, small consolation. I’d just dropped Claire off at her parents’ house. I had told her I was heading to Dad’s. I just couldn’t bring myself to tell her I was stopping at the cemetery first. She would’ve understood, probably she would’ve even offered to come with me. But I just couldn’t bring myself to talk about it. Besides, after everything, this was something I truly needed to do on my own. I closed my eyes and ran my hand over the cool, smooth surface of the headstone.
