179 Settling In

(Winona)

Mom comes back through first and I get up to go make her some tea.

“Do you take cream and sugar?” I never remember her drinking tea.

She shakes her head. “No. Just plain thanks.”

Maybe she couldn’t afford cream and sugar before. My mind is full of a lot of maybes as I make her drink and take it into the living room and hand it to her. “Mom, sit down. Relax.”

She takes it with a smile and sits on the edge of the sofa. Resting her cup on the side table. “This is all so much, Winona. I don’t know how to thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” I say, taking a sip of my tea. “We’re family. This is what we do for each other. Plus, it probably is my fault that the house got torched. I did go in with both feet, and I could have handled things a little more calmly.”

She nods, but I can see the doubt in her eyes. She’s never really had a family like this before—a family that’s there for her, that supports her. And I’m not sure she knows how to handle it.

“I can’t say I’m sorry it’s g