I had made it very clear that I couldn’t lend any money that month, because I still had to put all my money and emotional strength toward the surgery I was about to undergo, and I kept thinking my daughter-in-law would be understanding and stop there. But just a few minutes later, my phone lit up with a message from her, so cold that I was left stunned, unable to believe what had just appeared before my eyes.

I thought about the first time I wrote them a check.

My son had just been laid off from a regional sales job that never should have let him go the week before Christmas, but corporations do what corporations do, and human timing means nothing to them. My daughter-in-law was three months pregnant with their first baby. They had found an apartment in a decent school district, one of those aging brick complexes with narrow balconies and just enough grass for a stroller. They needed the deposit fast because their savings were thin and the lease started in two weeks. Six thousand dollars. I hadn’t hesitated. I didn’t even frame it as a decision. You don’t hesitate when your child is young and scared and about to become a parent himself. You write the check, tell him not to worry, and go home feeling grateful that you were in a position to help.