When I'm Gone

You can’t assume everything’s okay inside the house just because the paint isn’t peeling and the yard is neatly mowed.

appearing okay is a lot easier than actually being okay.

It’s the end that marks a beginning, not the first day.

It always amazed him how something that is broken on the inside can look so perfect on the outside.

What they don’t know is this: appearing okay is a lot easier than actually being okay. May

How could he find a future with someone if he couldn’t stop obsessing about what happened in the past?

He’s sad, and sometimes sad comes out as mad.” “Hmm.

It sounded like something he definitely didn’t want to do, today or ever,

Our feet whispered through the grass as fireflies flickered in slow circles around

What’s worse,” he continued, absentmindedly placing his head on top of Annie’s, “everyone in town knew he hit her. Terry knew; she’s told me that before. It was like this big extended family of enablers. No one called the cops, least of all my mom.

At least when you are a widower, everyone expects you to be sad. Annie had loved Natalie like a sister, yet she was expected to go on with life as though Natalie meant no more to her than the checkout girl at the Wal-Mart. Though

contacts list. Unfortunately there wasn’t a whole lot of online info about the former pastor turned college professor. A grainy photo on the Eastern Michigan University website, a brief and seemingly outdated bio of Dr. Neal Townsend, and the words “associate professor” underneath. Luke had even pushed the boundaries on crazy and paid for a background check, but the guy was a saint. Not even a traffic ticket. The mystery of Maranatha House was all but over. This Neal still bothered Luke though. He couldn’t put his finger on why, but it did. Luke scanned the sandwich shop for Felicity. They were meeting for dinner and a movie, and he was so nervous he’d ended up getting there early. This was their third official date, not counting the cinnamon rolls in her office. It wasn’t until halfway through their

Why are little kids’ cheeks so temptingly kissable, especially when they are sleeping?

I feel pretty melodramatic writing you a letter to open on the day of my burial.

How could everyone else find it so simple to slip back into life, the world revolving, businesses opening and closing, buying and selling, when the pillow on the right side of his bed was empty every night? Luke

Luke decided to refrain from his own glass, not sure it was wise to rid himself of too many inhibitions when he was a proud owner of so many.

always amazed him how something that is broken on the inside can look so perfect on the outside.

He stepped back across the invisible line married people wear around them when spending time with the opposite sex, folded the letter protectively, and put it back in his robe pocket.

questions—but in this case he’d rather read Natalie’s

He had a real mom, with flesh and blood and a heartbeat he could feel and hear. A heart he grew under for nine months. A body that fed him for another ten. Arms that held him for three years.

Grief seemed to chase away the comfort of sleep, and he longed for a night where he could drift off into a blissfully unaware dreamworld, where life was potentially weird but definitely less paralyzing.

hasn’t happened in a long time. I swear. We are doing great.” Luke raised his eyebrows. He knew better; he’d seen the finger-shaped bruises on her arm just a few days ago. Annie ignored him. “I know you can’t understand. You and Natalie had the perfect marriage.

I think I do a good impression of human on most days. I