That sentence is easier to write than to obey. Evidence is not a perfect map of reality. Research reflects the questions people chose to ask, the measurements they could make, the studies institutions funded, and the results journals preserved. Some human experiences are difficult to isolate or measure. Some questions remain understudied. Those limits deserve attention.

They do not give me permission to fill a gap with whatever I already wanted to believe.

Throughout this book, research and public records test how far my interpretations can travel. They can identify patterns, complicate memory, and expose claims that outrun what the evidence establishes. They cannot make the moral judgment for me. A study can tell us something about how people behave or what outcomes tend to follow. It cannot decide what one person owes another.

My life does not decide that either.