“Yes.”
“But Paige is my daughter-in-law. Whatever she did, she’s my son’s wife, and I’m not interested in making things harder for their marriage than they already are.” She paused. “What I am interested in is you being part of the picture now. Not as a consolation prize. Because you’re an interesting person who happens to be your daughter’s mother.”
I thought about what that meant. Not Ruth rescuing me or inserting herself into my relationship with Paige. Just an ordinary thing: a person who found another person worth knowing.
“I’d like that,” I said.
We agreed to have lunch the following week. We have had lunch four times since then. We still work together on the community meals program. She is not my best friend; Donna will always be my best friend. But Ruth Lawson is a person I am genuinely glad to know, and the relationship we are building has nothing to do with what Paige did. It’s just two people who found each other useful and interesting.
I think that’s one of the stranger and more human things to come out of this whole mess.
## Andrew and Me: Learning Each Other
Getting to know Andrew happened in pieces, because pieces were what was available. He and Paige were working through their own process, and I did not want to insert myself into that work or create additional pressure on a marriage that was already under strain.
What I could do was respond when he reached out, and he reached out with more frequency than I expected.