My Parents Took the $22,000 Hawaii Trip I Paid For

laughed weakly, then got quiet again.

“Aunt Claire?”

“Yes?”

“If I get in somewhere far away, can I go?”

The question broke my heart.

Not because of what she asked.

Because of what she needed permission to want.

“Yes,” I said. “You can go.”

“What if she says I’m abandoning her?”

“Then she’ll be wrong.”

“What if Grandma cries?”

“Then Grandma cries.”

“What if Grandpa continue reading …