Mom always said people worried too much about their children. Suffering when you are young is good for you, she said. It immunized your body and your soul.

You'll never make a fortune working for the boss man.

But the positive thoughts would give way to negative thoughts, and the negative thoughts seemed to swoop into her mind the way a big flock of black crows takes over the landscape, sitting thick in the trees and on the fence rails and lawns, staring at you in ominous silence.

Sometimes you need a little crisis to get your adrenaline flowing and help you realize your potential.

She wore tight corsets to give her a teeny waist - I helped her lace them up - but they had the effect of causing her to faint. Mom called it the vapors and said it was a sign of her high breeding and delicate nature. I thought it was a sign that the corset made it hard to breathe.

The dangerous falls were the ones that happened so fast you didn't have time to react

....he said it was interesting. He used the word 'textured'. He said 'smooth' is boring but 'textured' was interesting, and the scar meant that I was stronger than whatever had tried to hurt me.