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Since that day, my world became silence and yellowing photographs. I was left alone in a house that was too big, surrounded by memories that hurt to touch.<\/p>\n
Robert, my only son, insisted that I move in with him and his wife.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t be alone, Mom. At your age, it\u2019s dangerous,\u201d he sounded worried over the phone.<\/p>\n
I wanted to believe him. I needed to believe him. So I packed my life into four suitcases and left behind the house where I raised my son, where Henry and I used to dance in the kitchen on Sundays, where every corner held pieces of us.<\/p>\n
Robert\u2019s house was modern, with gleaming floors and furniture that looked straight out of a magazine. Dawn, my daughter-in-law, greeted me with a smile that didn\u2019t reach her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWelcome, Helen,\u201d she said, without calling me mother-in-law, without calling me Mom. Just Helen, as if I were a stranger.<\/p>\n
From the very first day, I knew I had made a mistake, but it was too late to go back.<\/p>\n