“You should be concentrating on what you’re here for, which is getting sober and rebuilding your life. Lilly is a distraction that takes you away from that.”
“Lilly had a new pair of movie star sunglasses, complete with glittery diamonds and a chain like Mr. Slingers. She had three shiny quarters. And, best of all, she had a brand new purple plastic purse that played a jaunty tune when it was opened.”
“Lilly loved school. She loved the pointy pencils. She loved the squeaky chalk. And she loved the way her boots went clickety-clickety-clack down the long, shiny hallways. Lilly loved the privacy of her very own desk. She loved the fish sticks and chocolate milk every Friday in the lunchroom. And, most of all, she loved her teacher, Mr. Slinger.”
“Mr. Slinger was as sharp as a tack. He wore artistic shirts. He wore glasses on a chain around his neck. And he wore a different colored tie for each day of the week.”
“Whenever the students had free time, they were permitted to go to the Lightlbulb Lab in the back of the classroom. They expressed their ideas creatively through drawing and writing. Lilly went often. She had a lot of ideas. ”
“Lilly ran and skipped and hopped and flew all the way home, she was so happy. And she really did want to be a teacher when she grew up-- That is, when she didn’t want to be a dancer or a surgeon or an ambulance driver or a diva or a pilot or a hairdresser or a scuba diver...”