He told the story in fragments.

When he was nineteen, he worked nights repairing engines at a shop in Fresno.

He was angry, broke, and more willing to believe the worst about himself than anyone else could have been.

His father had disappeared, and his mother was ill.

He lived in a rented room with a broken fan and paid his bills whenever he could.

Violet, then in her early forties, ran a small neighborhood assistance center near the auto shop.

On evenings when Gregory had nothing left to eat, she placed a hot meal in his hands and called it an extra portion rather than charity.