“Terribly. Will you tell me your story?” Slowly at first, then tumbling like water over rocks, I begin to speak. It has been so long since I have told anyone of Aunt Daphne, of losing my parents, of the disappointment of my marriage. I feel quite mad to be speaking of it now, even though I offer only the smallest fragment of the whole, but perhaps a stranger is the one person with whom I can speak without fear of consequence. It is a heady mix of fear and relief to give in to this brief vulnerability.
