My Parents' Orphans

We were the quintessential small-town all-American family with loving parents; I was the oldest of five children. We loved small-town parades, picnics, my mom’s deviled eggs, and fireworks. Dad was an Eagle Boy Scout leader, and Mom was a Brownie Troop leader. We were the joyful, happy, traditional family on your Hallmark greeting cards; the kind of family Normal Rockwell used as models for his American Family paintings. And suddenly one morning, without even the smallest warning—just like in th