I married a prisoner for money while he was serving a twelve-year sentence — but after his conviction was overturned, he came to my apartment with a black box and said, “Now it’s my turn to be honest.”

visits, he asked about my brother.

He remembered details I’d mentioned weeks earlier.

He wanted to know whether Toby was doing well in school and whether I’d managed to repair our unreliable old car.

Sometimes he made me laugh. GetWriting Tools

Other times, he simply listened.

His letters were even more thoughtful.

He filled the margins with tiny sketches.

Sometimes he’d draw a lighthouse.

Sometimes a house beside a lake.

Once, he drew a little birthday cake for Toby and asked me to tell him that someone was cheering for