The house was alive with the sounds of chatter and clanging pots and pans as I neared the kitchen. Miriam would be overseeing the dinner preparations now. She ran the house like a ship, every meal always right on time, every surface dusted and the floor swept and mopped before anyone even thought of going to bed.

Most of the snow had melted and the air was warm enough to start the spring gardening. I’d noticed those changes already being made when I first arrived back ...