This is actually 3 paragraphs but the quote encapsulates what this essay by Dianne Moritz is about: Struggling to reconcile the cruelty her mother showed Dianne with the desire now to hold onto old photos of her.

We appreciate how Dianne does justice to their complicated mother-daughter relationship in under 1,000 words in this week’s Object-ives flash essay, about a personal possession the writer can’t stop thinking about. Want to submit your own? See the end for a link to our writing guidelines.