My youngest son and I, woke up in a hotel room, a few miles down the road from the prison where my husband was.
We barely ate our breakfast at the hotel as we were far too excited for what lay ahead.
We gave his name in at the gate and then they brought him down, with all of his stuff.
We were both overcome with emotion and burst into tears. Seeing him outside of the confines of prison for the first time in 16 months was completely overwhelming.
We hugged and cried all 3 of us.
As I am writing this I can feel those raw emotions again.
The hardest part of it all, was finally over.
Upon my counsellors’ advice I turned around and said goodbye to that prison as I left for the final time, this time not having to leave a piece of me behind those bars.
We’ve come such a long way in the year since his release.
We are still not where we want to be, he is still not home with us full time, but things are a million times better than they were.
Whilst they are away, be it for 3 months or 3 years, we feel like it will never end. Yet time passes. That is one of the few guarantees in life.
Whilst my emotions are still very up and down, I can still be triggered by small things, we have come so far. I try to remind myself of this when I have my wobbles.
Our family is healing, slowly from the trauma of the knock and the aftermath.
Having your family torn apart by the criminal justice system, makes you appreciate every minute together. Be it going out for a family breakfast together or just sitting watching TV or having a takeaway, the gratitude is amazing.
Our children are happy again. They have their Dad back.
I am no longer a single parent. I have my other half back again.
After the knock 