To place yourself in someone’s path and trust that the rest would happen on its own.
She had been right.
It had.
Patricia knocked gently on the open door.
“How are you doing in here?”
“I’m all right,” I said.
And I meant it.
She came in and sat on the edge of the bed — the way staff did when they were off the clock and just being human for a moment.
“She talked about you, you know.
Before you were assigned to her.
She had specifically requested a volunteer for Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.
The coordinator thought it was just about scheduling.” Patricia smiled.
“I always wondered.”
“She planned everything,” I said.
“She was the most organized person I’ve ever met.” Patricia paused.
“She was also the loneliest.
For a long time.” She looked at me.
“Until you started coming.”
I turned the ring over in my hand.
“I keep thinking about all the things I didn’t know,” I said.
