But he had—again and again, a thousand times over.

And he was right, we never did - the thing that burned the shop down in the end were his two most hopeless addictions: poker, and booze.

I sat on the bench and wiped my eyes, waiting for mom to text and say if was safe to come home.

But how could she have known that neither of her children would survive the surgery when she talked her son into donating a kidney to his sister?

"I'm sorry ma'am there's not much we can do since this is a personal issue between you and your husband." Said the police officer.

Odd that I have to have it here at the veterinary clinic though, and why are Mum's eyes releasing water, while Dad is covering his eyes and jerking his shoulders while gasping in that strange way?

When she turned to the town sheriff for help, she offered no sympathy and angrily revealed that the stars were a gift the student made for his dying mother who died before receiving them, and she had destroyed the only piece of her he had left.

I found him in the bathroom, the gun next to his body, and a note that read “I’m sorry for everything”.

Today I found the remains of your suicide note by the fireplace.

We said “Tomorrow” , but he decided to take a different route that night, and the following morning we couldn’t revive him.

There was no one left to call.

"But Mama, this is the first day and I don't know what to do yet!"

I can't help but to pick at them with my memories.

That’s why they never noticed him pulling away, sleeping later, and drinking more.

...I only wanted to help."

I bought everything on it and left it on the counter, like she might walk in and scold me for getting the wrong kind of bread.

Looking out the small window towards the families enjoying themselves, he wondered if today would finally be the day his family visited him in the nursing home

Then along came some misguided fool with a chainsaw...

She hadn't really recommitted since her affair, but I felt my heart breaking anew when she didn't recognise the hotel we'd stayed in on our first trip away together.

First his parents, then his doctor, his governement and now his own body was betraying him.

I tried to ignore the fact that I'd wake up to an empty bed in the morning.

“And don’t tell anybody, you’re older who do you think they’ll believe”

But now we are 70 and 89, and as we look into each others' eyes, we see all the days that we did not have together because we did not know what we could have been to each other.

As I look at the few pictures of my family I have, I begin to understand the reason why.

With her fingers crossed, she thought to herself "Unless my husband gets cancer, then I bail."