Someone to Sit in the Foxhole: A Grandfather’s Speech That Changed Everything

came home—really?”

I stared at the tabletop.

The old instinct rose in me: Move on, son.

But Maya’s voice echoed in my head.

Pretending everything is fine.

So I told the truth.

“I came home,” I said, “and everybody wanted me to either be a hero or a monster.”

Tyler’s eyes flicked up, surprised.

“And nobody wanted me to be a person,” I finished. “A person who continue reading …