Motherhood came to Clara with no manual, no partner, and no margin for error. She learned through sleepless nights, fumbling with bottles while studying medication charts, carrying a diaper bag on one shoulder and patient files on the other. There were mornings she rushed into work with Emily swaddled against her chest, soothing her while answering a doctor’s questions.
There were moments of panic too—Emily’s first fever, the tumble from a crib, the day she slipped out of sight at the park and Clara’s heart stopped until a stranger pointed to where the toddler was chasing pigeons. Every obstacle left Clara more determined, more protective, more certain that this child was meant to be hers.