Miss Beezus

"Theater," he said. "Glorious theater. It creates family for all kinds of orphans."

Intelligence is one of the greatest human gifts. But all too often a search for knowledge drives out the search for love. This is something else I've discovered for myself very recently. I present it to you as a hypothesis: Intelligence without the ability to give and receive affection leads to mental and moral breakdown, to neurosis, and possibly even psychosis. And I say that the mind absorbed in and involved in itself as a self-centered end, to the exclusion of human relationships, can only lead to violence and pain.

Why does your concern for me

Work hard in silence, and let your success be your noise.

I drop it for now and change the subject. 'How does anybody get to be who they really are, anyway?' The question dissolves between us, its importance evaporates. We stare across at each other peacefully while the air between us grows clearer and clearer, and a new bond, a new sense of unity emerges, forged out of a mutual realization that we are a sisterhood of survivors.

'There are no guarantees, Laura. But I can tell you this. You've seen a lot, for your young years. Make it work for you going forward. Keep asking questions, demanding answers and calling the beast by its name. Life is too short to spend on the pursuit of guarantees.'

Our heartache poured into one another like water from cup to cup. Each time I told my story, I lost a bit, the smallest drop of pain. It was that day that I knew I wanted to tell the story of my family. Because horror on Earth is real and it is every day. It is like a flower or like the sun; it cannot be contained.