If you’ve lost a parent or other family member, or simply someone close to you, who didn’t get you (or didn’t quite get you), you’ll want to read Eleanor Anstruther’s essay below. Yes, it’s about the two particular title paintings but it’s about so much more than the inheritance of physical items. It’s about what those items represent and say about their relationships.

And while it’s Eleanor’s essay, the comments section is just as revealing. Elissa Altman writes in there in part: “Lord have mercy: such mind-bogglingly gorgeous, hilarious, heart-wrenching, stunning writing on a subject no one has dared yet touch until now.” And THAT is why we do what we do and will keep doing it: to make readers feel seen and understood, and to provide the same for our authors.

We’re always so grateful when writers bare their souls in Open Secrets, not to “overshare,” but simply to share and express their very human stories and connect with readers around them.