Love Letter: ‘I Took My Baby and Ran’

After leaving an abusive relationship, a new mother finds community online.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story January 20, 2023 By Miya Lee After leaving an abusive marriage, Betsy Cornwell felt like an isolated herd animal, always on the lookout for danger. She barely slept or ate. It was difficult for her to trust people. But when the coronavirus sent the world into lockdown, Ms. Cornwell was surprised to find herself connecting with others online. In this week's Modern Love essay, "I'll Get by With a Little Help From My Herd," she writes about how the strength of her online community buoyed her in difficult times. MODERN LOVE "I told my online communities about my idea and did something they had with their love taught me to do — I asked for help." Brian Rea MODERN LOVE I'll Get by With a Little Help From My Herd A single mother, alone with a toddler in a foreign country, finds community during Covid — and then creates one for others. By Betsy Cornwell Subscribe Today We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times with this special offer. Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT MORE MODERN LOVE Read the latest batch of Tiny Love Stories or submit one yourself! Brian Rea MODERN LOVE Tiny Love Stories: 'Destined for Singlehood' Modern Love in miniature, featuring reader-submitted stories of no more than 100 words. Brian Rea TINY LOVE STORIES Tell Us Your Love Story. Just Keep It Really Short. We're looking for all the emotion that's fit to print — in no more than 100 words. By Daniel Jones and Miya Lee LOVE AND MARRIAGE "To make it all work, they ended up having four separate wedding ceremonies on three continents." Samson Kosana Photography VOWS Four Cross-Cultural Celebrations on Three Continents Harish Vemuri and PD Akita, who met at Harvard Law School, found a way to honor all of their families' cultures and traditions — and their own wishes — when they married. By Alix Wall Allison Maginn Photography MINI-VOWS After Loss, Living Life 'More Ferociously' Together Sandra Brooke and David Gordon became each other's source of support after their spouses died. By Vivian Ewing Jenny Fu MINI-VOWS A Trauma That Tied Them Together Travis Johnson and Rachael Bozsik were set up by a professional matchmaker that neither had actually hired. Eventually, the match took. By Judy Mandell MINI-VOWS 'An Annoying Question' That Led to a Big One Christopher Giglio spotted Lawrence Curran at a department store 10 years ago and decided to make a move. By Sadiba Hasan ASK THE EXPERTS "This feels like a situation in which there are significant downsides to the truth as well as to the lie." Illustration by Tomi um ETHICIST Is It OK to Let My Relatives Think Their Dead Sister Is Still Alive? The magazine's Ethicist columnist on whether to come clean about a well-intended lie. By Kwame Anthony Appiah Miguel Porlan SOCIAL Q'S I'm Racing My Biological Clock and a Tight-Lipped Boyfriend. Help! A reader eager to have a child before she turns 40 doesn't know what to make of a new love interest's silence when conversation turns to the future. By Philip Galanes Continue reading the main story ADVERTISMENT LOVE IN THE NEWS "The choices afforded by economic opportunity — to decide your own love and your own life — ran up against the protective traditions of old." India's Love Story With a Movie Still on the Big Screen After 27 Years 'D.D.L.J.,' which a Mumbai theater has shown nearly every day since 1995, encapsulates a society in churn, with the choices afforded by economic opportunity clashing with tradition. By Mujib Mashal, Suhasini Raj and Atul Loke Ian Willms for The New York Times FIELD NOTES Engagement Parties With a Cover Charge "Stag and does" are a largely rural Ontario tradition that help engaged couples raise money for their nuptials — and give neighbors a good reason to party. By Shivani Gonzalez Jenn Ackerman for The New York Times Q. AND A. A Modern Shopping Experience for Mothers of the Bride or Groom Allison Kaplan, the editor in chief of Twin Cities Business, discusses a new website designed to help women find the right outfits for their children's weddings. By Alix Wall Lise Aserud The British Aren't the Only Ones With Royal Drama Dysfunction and disorder are hardly restricted to the House of Windsor. Here's a look at some of the world's other messy monarchies. By Elizabeth Paton Universal Pictures REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK A Doll That Wears Sunglasses With Attitude? Oh, 'M3gan' Is a Gay Movie. The title robot — reminiscent of the loyal but messy straight women that gay men are protective of — is progress for a genre with a shameful history. By Erik Piepenburg Amélie Fontaine How to Make a Caregiving Plan (So It's Ready When You Need It) Talking about aging and illness can be difficult, but experts have tips for getting started. By Lynya Floyd Joshua Bessex for The New York Times ESSAY Parenting Lessons From the 1990s Kids Who Grew Up Bills Fans They said watching the Bills lose four straight Super Bowls taught them about football and life. The Times asked which of those lessons of fandom were worth passing on to their children now that the team is favored to win it all. By Joe Nocera We want to hear your stories. Here's how to submit a Modern Love essay or an Unhitched column. Don't feel like writing more than two tweets, an Instagram caption or a Facebook post? Consider submitting to Tiny Love Stories, which are no more than 100 words. 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