"Was Sarah a good child?" I wanted to block my ears against my mother's reply. She answered without hesitation.
"Both of my daughters were perfect. I couldn't have asked for nicer girls. I love them dearly. There was no one else in the world to compare to my children, and my husband, God rest his soul." Karen hesitated, and then moved closer.
"Tell me more about Sarah," she said. "Did she do everything perfectly?"
My mother laughed out loud. "Heavens, no! Neither of my children did! When they stepped out of line, I had to punish them much as I hated to, but they learned to be responsible for their actions and learned by their mistakes. They understood right from wrong but that didn't mean they didn't experiment. I expected that. Good children do naughty things sometimes. That doesn't make them bad children. All children have to make mistakes and they'll be better for it. We talked, lord did we talk, about everything! I was always proud that my girls could discuss anything with me. I'd never lie to them and we trusted them far more than most parents."
"Lots of adults lie."
"Yes, that's unfortunate but true. You have to learn to trust the truthful ones. Do you lie?"
Karen hesitated. "Sometimes."
"Don't. It's not just naughty but it has a way of destroying relationships. We never allowed it around our house. Don't lie to Sarah and I'm sure she'll never lie to you. Does she give you a free reign . . . allow you to make choices?"
Karen looked to me before responding, once again, tactfully. "More so than before Sarah came into my life. We were rather sheltered."
"There was very little we forbade our children to do. They respected our trust and nearly always acted responsibly."
"You let them do anything they wanted to?"
"Heavens, no! I didn't say that. I'd explain the possible results and let them make intelligent decisions on their own. They almost always made the right choice and when they didn't, they knew the consequences. In some ways, ours was like no other family there was so much love and understanding."
While I continued to feel like a piece of furniture, I was fascinated by my mother's reminiscences.
"What other fun things did you do?" Karen asked.
"The four of us went everywhere. The girl's dad had an unexciting job so his time with us, especially the weekends, was extra special. There were theater plays and sporting events and lots of hikes and camping trips. We loved to explore new places and do new things. Not pricy things; we didn't have a lot of money; but we fished and hiked. We liked history so we visited every museum and historical site in driving distance."