After eating and playing, Hazel asked permission to play for a while near the swings. Blair looked in the direction she pointed. The distance wasn’t too far.
“You can go, but don’t go too far, sweetheart. And make sure we can still see you,” Blair instructed, her voice carrying the gentle authority of a protective mother.
Hazel nodded enthusiastically and ran toward the swings, her small legs carrying her across the grass with boundless energy. Blair and Jonathan settled back against their picnic blanket, sharing light stories and soft laughter, occasionally falling into comfortable silence as they enjoyed the warm breeze that rustled through the park’s ancient oak trees.
The afternoon sun cast long shadows across the playground, and other families dotted the landscape with their own mo
