“I stop to brace myself against the walls, which are painted with the fingerprints of family.”

“As I held the family Bible in my hand and I could almost feel the joys and sorrows that connected me to the past.”

“Before I disappear behind the door, I stop and turn around to look at him.”

“I consider all things a work of fiction, even myself.”

“The wind blowing through the cracks in the walls was fitting for this isolated and lonely place.”

“She turned her painted blue eyes toward the assistant and said something in French before she left.”

“Papa was our strength and the very fiber that wove our family together. He was our foundation and our rock, but even rocks, break, given enough stress.”