I Was Holding My Son’s T-Shirt When His Teacher Called And Said He Had Left Something Behind

were slightly uneven. The beak curved in the wrong direction. It was, objectively, a lopsided little bird.

I had told him it was beautiful.

He had rolled his eyes with the theatrical exhaustion of a thirteen-year-old who has been caught being touched by something. “Mom,” he said, “you are legally required to say that.”

I started crying at the red light.continue reading …