I did not move back into the Bayview condo on the day the court released it.
My attorney helped me inventory Mom's belongings. Everything had been packed into numbered boxes except the old kitchen table.
A shallow knife mark crossed its surface.
When I first learned to cut bread as a child, the knife slipped. Mom did not scold me. She bandaged my hand and told me to slow down next time.
I sat at the table for a while, then took out the lock box she had left me.
It contained no money and no family signet ring.
Aside from a bank card in my name, it held only the notes she had written to me.
Pay the utilities for the Bayview condo on the 15th of each month.
The kitchen window leaks cold air. Remember to have someone fix it.
The last held only one sentence.
Never safeguard the mistak
