MY MOM IS DEAD AND MY DAD IS DATING

Attempting To Adjust To My New Reality

So much of my life is unrecognizable from six months ago. And that’s not even including the fact that I now have short hair and a new tattoo. (Although both are rather tell-tale signs of grief.) When I started consistently swimming laps over the summer, I remember repeatedly thinking, Nothing traumatic has happened to me in a while. I was finally in a stable marriage even if my husband was struggling with his career. My knee was getting better after a horrendous recovery from major surgery. And I hadn’t suffered a painful friendship breakup or significant career mishap in recent memory. I felt lucky and grateful. And then everything changed.