“I’m sorry for your loss.”
Adelaide cringed. She was so sick of hearing that phrase, over and over again from every single person. It was all she ever heard from anyone.
I’m sorry. My condolences. It’s so sad. It’s such a shame.
Nothing but tears and sadness and apologies.
She wanted to scream. Instead, she swallowed back her frustration and smiled. “Thank you.”
Of all the people she spoke to, it was the mouth of innocence that she finally heard. “So Uncle Hank isn’t coming back ever?” Her four-year-old niece, all curly hair and blue eyes and pouty lips. “Like never ever?”
“No, sweetie. He’s gone now.” She didn’t repeat any of the other statements people were using. He was suffering. He’s not in pain anymore. He’s gone to a better place. She was as sick of hearing those as she was of hearing the apologies. It was all well and good to say such nice things, but none of those things changed the fact that her husband was gone.
“Oh.” Sad, water eyes pulled down as her niece frowned. “What are you gonna do?”
What was she going to do with herself? The last three years of her life had been devoted entirely to caring for her husband, and before that she had been just a child. On the very cusp of a new beginning. There were so many things she wanted to do, so many things that she had put on hold when her childhood sweetheart had gotten sick. Things they were going to do together.
So what was she going to do?
A slow smile crept across her lips for the first time since her world had fallen apart. “Everything. I’m going to do everything.”
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This is great 🙂 it totally understand not wanting to here anymore about the not so fulfilling apologies.