The Other Einstein

by Marie Benedict

I constantly astonished myself with these girls. Astonished that I had the words to express my long-buried stories. Astonished that I allowed them to see who I really was. And astonished that I was accepted regardless.

This passage really flows from the earlier scenes among Mileva and her new university friends and her interior thoughts about engaging in these friendships, her very first. Having spent her life closed off from other girls and young women—really relying on her family unit for companionship and support, emotional and otherwise—it must have been quite a leap for her to open herself up and trust in these female relationships. Wouldn't you have been wary of opening up to them after a lifetime of isolation and even ostracization? But once she landed in their metaphorical embrace, she considered fresh life paths and felt a new world open up for her. Until Albert came along, anyway, and began wreaking havoc!