DURING OUR YEARLY FAMILY REUNION, MY OLDER SISTER MARIA PUSHED ME INTO THE LAKE. SHE LAUGHED WHILE I GASPED FOR AIR, TEASING, “STOP BEING SO DRAMATIC.” My parents, Rebecca and David, watched from the dock, silent smiles on their faces. I didn’t argue. I just fought my way back to shore, lungs burning, a new, cold resolve hardening inside me...... The scent of pine needles and barbecue smoke hung over the lakeside cabin, a picture-perfect setting for the family’s favorite play: a recurring nightm

DURING OUR YEARLY FAMILY REUNION, MY OLDER SISTER MARIA PUSHED ME INTO THE LAKE. SHE LAUGHED WHILE I GASPED FOR AIR, TEASING, “STOP BEING SO DRAMATIC.” My parents, Rebecca and David, watched from the dock, silent smiles on their faces. I didn’t argue. I just fought my way back to shore, lungs burning, a new, cold resolve hardening inside me...... The scent of pine needles and barbecue smoke hung over the lakeside cabin, a picture-perfect setting for the family’s favorite play: a recurring nightm

DURING OUR YEARLY FAMILY REUNION, MY OLDER SISTER MARIA PUSHED ME INTO THE LAKE. SHE LAUGHED WHILE I GASPED FOR AIR, TEASING, “STOP BEING SO DRAMATIC.” My parents, Rebecca and David, watched from the dock, silent smiles on their faces. I didn’t argue. I just fought my way back to shore, lungs burning, a new, cold resolve hardening inside me...... The scent of pine needles and barbecue smoke hung over the lakeside cabin, a picture-perfect setting for the family’s favorite play: a recurring nightm