One thing that comforted Denise Ryan after her divorce was that she and her ex-husband still talked every day. Even though they lived apart, they were still co-parenting their son, Alexander, and they were constantly jumping on the phone to tell each other what he was up to at their respective homes. The daily calls stopped, though, when Denise’s ex fell in love and started building a new family. Now Alexander had a second mother figure in his life, and he was adjusting remarkably well. Alexander seemed to enjoy the time he spent with his stepmom, and soon he became a big brother to her new baby. Denise sincerely wanted the best for her son and her ex, but it didn’t feel great to be on the outside peering in at their new life. Then, Denise got an unexpected call for help, giving her a chance to rethink the role she was playing. She realized that the end of a marriage didn’t have to mean the end of a family. The Modern Love essay that inspired this conversation is called “Please Love My Son as I Do (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/21/style/modern-love-please-love-my-son-as-i-do.html) .” Here’s how to submit a Modern Love essay (https://www.nytimes.com/article/how-to-submit-a-modern-love-essay.html) , and how to submit a Tiny Love Story (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/19/style/modern-love-tiny-love-stories.html?pgtype=Article&action=click&module=RelatedLinks) . Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts (http://nytimes.com/podcasts) or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here (https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher) . For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app (https://nytimes.com/app) .