But the letter also veered into advice and encouragement that seemed oddly trivial at first blush. Her father shared a trick for vanishing unwanted peas from a dinner plate, a reminder to put her socks on before her trousers, and directions for making “special milk,” a warm drink tinctured with vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar. Special milk, her father wrote, is a powerful potion in the battle against the dark. And it is perfectly all right, my dear Iz, to be afraid of the dark. People who tell you not to be afraid of things are usually the first to get eaten by tigers. Fear helps us to prepare. I
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