a guardian ad litem... GAL is appointed by a court to be a child's advocate during legal proceedings that involve a minor. You don't have to be a lawyer to be trained as a GAL, but you have to have a moral compass and a heart. Which, actually probably renders most lawyers unqualified for the job.

When I think about writers who use fiction as social commentary and to raise social awareness but who are also very popular, I think of Dickens.

What you notice is the loneliness. Daniel started to isolate himself, because it hurt less than being pushed away.

Your hand fits mine like the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle

I wonder if other mothers feel a tug at their insides, watching their children grow up into the people they themselves wanted so badly to be.

Some people, they get down in a hole so deep they can't figure out what to hold on to.

No matter who you are, there is always some part of you that wishes you were someone else, and when, for a millisecond, you get that wish, it's a miracle.