Blank Canvas

March 1990, Presbyterian HospitalI opened my eyes again to see the man with the warm smile and the sandy blond hair from before. Dev."Marcy," he said, taking my hand. "I know things are a little fuzzy right now, but it's okay. We're going to get through this. Together."It still hurt to talk, and for once, I was grateful, because I honestly didn't know what to say. Everyone kept telling me my memory was hazy because of the coma following the birth of my baby girl. Maybe they were right. Maybe I really was 30. Maybe I did know this man."You remember Casen and Conner," he asked hopefully, "our little boys?"Casen and Conner?I have three kids with this man?I gave Dev a faint smile, but my heart was racing so quickly, I worried he would be able to see it pounding right through the sheets.What kind of mother doesn't remember her own kids?I closed my eyes and tried to remember, but all I saw was darkness. When I looked back up, Dev's eyes were filled with tears.That poor man.I wanted so badly to remember him.To remember our children.To remember anything.Beautifully rendered and full of rawness, truth, and hope, Blank Canvas is a reminder that no matter what we have suffered or lost, there is still beauty to be found in a new beginning.