The music from The Lord of the Rings played softly as the children slept against them. One by one, their breathing faded, peaceful and unafraid. Daniel took Elena’s trembling hand. Through tears, he whispered, “At the end of all things.”
There is a fear living in me that I can’t shake. It is not sudden. It did not crash into my life in one dramatic moment. It grew quietly, like a storm creeping over the horizon, and by the time I realized how dark the sky had become, it was already too late to pretend…