It was not proof that every difficult thing had been resolved.

It was a reminder of the one task that had mattered most on the day they arrived: to notice them, take them seriously, and get them help.

PART 20

At the end of the school year the class visited a community garden.

Violet planted marigolds; Nora planted another row of sunflowers.

Caroline volunteered for the afternoon and watched the girls work apart for almost an hour.