Over the weekend, I bawled hard at my niece’s baby shower, even though I had steeled myself not to. My niece is my only sibling’s only child. My sister died in a car accident and will never experience being a grandma. And my niece will never be able to turn to her mother for guidance. When my sister’s ex (they still loved each other) brought out a quilt made from some of my sister’s clothes, that was it.