The Hallway That Changed Everything
💔 Why I Started the My Family Series
There’s a moment I think about often. A stretch of hallway—maybe 15 feet long—where I had to figure out how to tell a six-year-old that her mother was gone.
Her mom had been in a motorcycle accident. It was sudden. Tragic. And as a step-grandparent, I wasn't sure where I fit in at first. But when Social Services called from the hospital looking for her dad, it was me and my wife who went to get her. Her father was overseas—in the military—doing his duty far from home. He got on a plane. We got in the car.
The next day, her mother’s parents arrived from out of town. We were all together, sitting in my living room, trying to hold each other up. But one moment hung heavy in the air:
Who was going to tell the child?
I looked at her grandparents—her real grandparents—and I saw something in their eyes that hit me like a freight train. Pain. Helplessness. Love.
And without saying much, I stood up.
I’ll go, I said.
I remember every step of that walk. Fifteen feet of carpet, hallway walls closing in. And in that short distance, I had to decide how to tell a child—just six years old—that her mommy had died.
I won’t share what I said here. That belongs to her. But I’ll tell you this:
No one prepares you for that moment. No books. No classes. No wise sayings.
But what came after was what changed me.
The questions.
The silence.
The tears.
And eventually… the drawings. The bedtime talks. The remembering.
💡 Why My Family Exists
That day, in that hallway, something planted itself in me. I realized there are moments when children face heartbreak and confusion—and we adults struggle to find the right words.
My Family is my attempt to give those words back to others.
These books are simple on the surface, but they come from very real places. They are meant to help start the conversation:
About death.
About divorce.
About adoption, differences, and disabilities.
About what it means to be safe, loved, and heard.
If a child can open one of these books and feel a little more seen…
Or if an adult can read one and finally figure out how to start that tough conversation…
Then I’ve done what I set out to do.
❤️ From My Family to Yours
You may never have to walk down that hallway like I did.
But if you ever do—or something like it—I hope My Family gives you even a little help along the way.
Because kids don’t need perfect answers.
They need honest ones.
Wrapped in love.
Said out loud.
And repeated, over and over again, until they feel safe enough to ask more.
Thanks for being here. I hope you’ll walk this journey with me.
— Larry “Pappy” Burks
Author, The My Family Series
