Chapter 22 - THE NAME
A few months later, Lena asked why her last name was Moretti.
We sat in the kitchen after breakfast.
“Because Daddy is a Moretti.”
She looked at Lorenzo.
“Was Grandpa a bad person?”
The question silenced the room.
Lorenzo thought carefully.
“He made bad choices.”
“Was he evil?”
“No.”
Lena frowned.
“What's the difference?”
“He let fear make decisions for him.”
She looked at me.
“Are you afraid?”
“Sometimes.”
“Then how do you stop?”
I smiled.
“By choosing not to let fear decide what you do.”
Lorenzo looked at me.
He knew exactly why my answer mattered.
Lena nodded.
“Then I want to choose good things.”
Lorenzo reached across the table.
“You will.”
She took his hand.
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
Watching them, I realized something.
Breaking a family curse didn't happen in court.
It happened at breakfast.
May you like
In conversations with children.
In the moments when you decided the next generation would inherit something better than the last.
