be too late for me to grant it.
Remarkably, Belinda passed her finals in
English, just barely and with a great deal of tutoring. I
had the distinct impression, however, that she also got
a little help from her teachers, maybe because of
Daddy's position in the community. During the week
before the graduation ceremony, Mother asked Daddy
to take us to Boston to find a nice dress for Belinda.
She wanted her to look special. It was as if Mother
had discovered a way to compensate for the terrible
thing that had occurred: to dwell on Belinda's
festivities so intensely there was no time to think
about or remember anything else. In one spending
spree, she would wipe away the dark clouds that clung
to the corners of our home. There would be no
shadows, no reminders, nothing but bright and happy
things. Daddy seemed more than eager to please her
and follow her lead to the world of "see no evil, hear
no evil."
At the last moment Mother decided to outdo
even herself and have a designer come to our home
and create an original dress for Belinda to wear. The
cost would easily be three times as expensive as an
off-the-rack dress, but once again, Daddy surrendered
before any battle and to my surprise, put away his
famous measurement of "What's the bottom line?"
This time, there was no bottom line.
I had to admit Belinda looked beautiful
graduation day. It was a perfect afternoon for an
outdoor graduation ceremony, too. A gentle, warm