Liam

Last Friday, my parents wanted me to meet them in Bennington for lunch. I had a rough time mentally preparing in the days leading up. I don’t see or hear from them much. They wanted to know how business is going. It’s not going well. My mom particularly latched on to the idea of hiring me for some painting at their house. I went over there two days this week to take down and paint shutters. The conversations I had with my mom while she helped me organize and label the shutters showed me that she has an interest in learning what my life has been like since I started distancing myself from family. Some of the unsurprising and gut-punch things she said: “Your siblings don’t know where they stand with you. They say they miss their sister, Lydia. They blame the distance on your new identity. They just want to know you care.” I explained that I called them each individually to tell them my new name just months before my surgery, which only one of them took any part in (which was muddy and qu...