The day begins the same: a cup of coffee on the swing, watching the old willow tree sway in the wind, branches whipping the ground like forty lashes gnawing away at the life she’s lived. Eleanor glances reflexively at the empty spot next to her. The mornings were always nice.

Emily is a new mom, a wife, a cat mom, an editor, a writer, and a singer—words and labels that don’t matter much to anyone, but to her, they are the portrait of a full and growing life. She hopes to expand that life with more words each day.