""Te/ us about yourse/f in such a way that we wi/ have a good sense of who you are." "Five hundred words. "" "I wish you asked me that two years ago." "I cou/d have to/d you exact/y who I was, who I'd be." "Two years ago I knew it a/, and the thing is, I was right." " How far is that from Juilliard?" " What?" "NYU?" "It's like 50 blocks." "You can walk it with a good pair of shoes." "That's not bad." "What else you got?" "Sarah Lawrence." "It's in Bronxville, about 40 minutes outside of the city by train." "But apparently they're very tattoo-friendly." "So that's good." "Is this too much?" "I told you I was only applying to schools close to your conservatories and now you're actually hearing me and you're actually freaking out." "No, I was just thinking that 40 minutes is pretty far." "And now I like you again." "Think about it, all the other couples are gonna freak out about the long-distance thing, and we'll be set." "Exactly." "It's not like New York and Boston don't have the best schools anyways." " It's like you're a genius sometimes." " I know." "I could, uh, do journalism at Columbia." "NYU has the best theater." "Tufts has amazing pre-med." "Ephram Brown?" "The guidance counselor's office asked me to call you down." "What for?" "Hey." "Chris Templeman." "I'm a recruiter from Colorado AM." "Well, I hate to tell you this, but I, uh, don't really play any sports." "They don't even let me go to the games." "I'm with our Music Department." "We try to keep an eye out for the local talent." "Like the sports guys do." "I hear that you're applying to schools now." "Uh, Juilliard, Berklee College of Music and..." "That's it." " Guess you're sleeping well." " No, I mean, I don't mean to be, uh..." "Yeah, I mean, it's very cool just to be asked uh, but I'm pretty set on going to Juilliard and it's kind of the place to be." "Don't be so sure." "Take it from me." " Oh, you went to Juilliard?" " Class of '81." "Wow." "you go there, you come out knowing a lot about actually playing piano, and that's it." "You come out of our program and you have top-notch technical training." "And that's worth something out there in the job world, trust me." "Look, I appreciate all this, but I'm pretty set with my plan." "You're 17." "I don't know how you can be expected to know how you're gonna feel 10 years from now." "Or 30." "You're ready to say that this is what you wanna do for the rest of your life?" "Never hurts to explore your options." "Talk it over with your parents." "If you feel like coming down, I'll get you on the tour." "Think about it." "P/ans are /ike candy to the Fates." "The on/y thing you can ever be sure of is nothing ever goes the way you imagined." "I shou/d probab/y be used to that by now." "What are you doing, and why are you still here?" "I have one answer for both questions." "I'm fixing you breakfast." "Waffles, muffins, brownies too." "Though technically that's more dessert than breakfast but who's gonna arrest me?" "Don't mean to be ungrateful, but shouldn't you be driving a bus full of kids to school?" "Not today." " What's the matter?" "You sick?" " Even better." "I quit." " You what?" " I told them I wanna retire, they said okay." "No more bus, no more driver, I'm done." "These are waffles of celebration." " I'm gonna open some champagne." " You keep that cork where it is." "Since when do we make life decisions around here without a consult?" "It was the spur of the moment." "I thought it, I said it." "They pulled out the papers." "But I gotta tell you, I never slept better." " And that's the end of it?" " Be happy for me, Edna." " Have a waffle." " You eat it." "Oh, come on, Edna." "Sorry, bucko." "Some of us still got a job to get to." "Oh, please tell me you didn't read all of this just for us." "Oh, you need to get out more." "Maybe join Netflix." "Are you kidding?" "Research is half the fun of the job." "Now I can say "cognitive neurorehabilitation" at parties." "You just made my guest list." "Actually, I'm amazed at the depth of research into stroke recovery." "Especially in patients with long-term aphasia like your husband." "Has anyone ever mentioned music therapy to you before?" " I don't think so." " If you're willing, I'd like to give it a try." "I want to build a structured music plan in your home." " Music plan?" " And it's basically what it sounds like." "We load up your 50-CD changer and then we keep the music playing at regular intervals." "From what I understand, the first priority is consistent stimulation and, apparently, music is the best kind." "Uh, Schubert, Haydn." "No Skynyrd, huh?" "Mm-mm." " And you think this will help?" " Yes." "I really do." "You know how, uh, overeager parents are always playing Mozart for their babies?" " Mm, the crazy ones." " Yes, it's the same principle." "We have found out that the human brain is much more malleable than we ever thought it was." "Connections form and strengthen constantly in response to environment." " The more stimulated the environment..." " The more the connections." "Hopefully." "At least it's a start." " I've had starts before." " I know you have." "I know you have." "Your husband has been non-responsive for 5 years and I know how hard it must be for you to think about treatment at this point." "But I have to tell you, I wouldn't put this out to you if I didn't think that this was a way in." "Worst thing that can happen is you load up your CD collection, heh." "Come on, what do you say?" "Why do I get the feeling that you're gonna keep asking me until I say yes?" "Because you are getting to know me." "Amy, would you come here please?" "Ahem." "Yeah?" "Whoa." "Amy Abbott, allow me to be the first to introduce you to your future." "Suffering from application anxiety?" "Overwhelmed by the options?" "Well, fret no more, because we answer all questions tonight." "Wha...?" "What did you do?" "Oh, only sent away for every piece of material available on the top 50 universities in the nation." "Applications, promotional videos, articles, reviews." "Everything you ever wanted to know about schools but were afraid to order online." "I have Kaplans, I have Barrons I even have the Hi/e/ Guide to Jewish Life on Campus for good measure." "Dim sum has been ordered, so in a few hours I shall be dumpling-stuffed and you will have narrowed all this down to your top 10." "We shall begin with the, uh, shameful number 50 of Penn State and work our way all the way up to Princeton." "Dad, this is great." "Really, I mean, I love the hats, all 50 of them but, um I already know where I wanna apply." " You do?" " Kind of, yeah." "Well, I was rather hoping we could make those decisions together." "I'm sorry." "I did the research at school like a month ago." "I already have my list down." "Um NYU, Columbia, Amherst, Wellesley Sarah Lawrence, Barnard, Tufts and Harvard." "So that you don't start skipping Church." "And I'm good." " Is that all?" " It's eight schools." "It's not as if you can't afford a ninth." "Say, a school with remarkable prestige consistently ranked in the top three by U.S. news, such as Princeton, perhaps." "Or how about Princeton?" " Heh." "I know you've always had a thing for them, but I don't see myself there." "I mean, eating clubs?" "What's that about?" "Oh, come now." "This was always your dream school." "Honey, I have baby pictures of you in a little orange sweatshirt." "Can't you just fill out the application for good measure?" "It's one more I don't have to write, but, uh, this is great." "Honestly, you saved me like a week of downloading." "So thank you." "I'll start tonight." "Okay, we're down to A Cindere/a Story, Powerpuff Gir/s, and Saving Private Ryan." " I like to mix it up." " Now, walk me through the Powerpuff Gir/s." "I'm gonna go practice." "Oh, FYI, I'm ditching school tomorrow." " Can I ditch too?" " Only if you get a job." "It's a school thing." "I'm gonna go to Colorado AM." "They got this walking tour." "Thought I might check it out." "Colorado?" "Why?" "For Amy?" "Uh, no." "For me." " Figured I might put in an application." " Wait a minute." "When did this happen?" "Today." "Why, you think it's weird?" " Do you?" " No." "Well, then neither do I. I'm just surprised." "We talked about all this last year." "There was yelling and then there was hugging." "We decided on the conservatories, Juilliard." "We had a plan." "Yeah, well, it doesn't mean I can't look." "Colorado's got a huge Music Department." "Besides, I can take something other than piano." "And anyway, it's just a tour." "You know what, you're right." " We'll have a great time." "No." "Not we." "You're not coming." "Come on, it's just a walking tour." "I'll walk with you." "See what they have to offer." " I'll clear my schedule." " Fine." "Great." "You drive, I'll bring the doughnuts." "Low on popcorn." "You have no learning curve." "Stand back, mama bear." "Papa's gonna flambé." " Ooh, what is it this time?" " Bananas Foster." "Retirement breakfast, part two." "If I can just keep from overcaramelizing the sugar, which really just means burn." "Love the Food Channel." "Too bad the bananas aren't the only thing fired around here." " How did you find out?" " It's a small town." " Why didn't you tell me you were canned?" " I didn't wanna get into it with you." "And they did their thing about cutbacks, with me being so close to retirement and I didn't want you going off half-cocked." "Those bastards fired you because of your age." "Like that." "And causing a ruckus." "You bet I'm causing a ruckus." "More than that, a fracas." " Then I'm just gonna kick some ass." " No, you won't." "Now, I'm not a fan of their reasons but I don't need to fight it either." " You'll let them put you out to pasture?" " No." "I may be done with the job, but I'm not done." "I've got a postcard in my head, Edna." "I wanna take you there." "I just started a new job." "And Doc Hartman needs you, but he won't forever." "Help him set up and then we'll skip town." "I'm ready for phase three of my life, Edna, and so are you." "Think of all we could do." "All we could see." "All the places we could make love." "No fair talking all romantic." "It's what I do." "Do we have to wait for phase three to get some practice in?" "Don't you have to go to work?" "He can answer his own phone for an hour." "Try to keep up because this might take a whi/e." "Okay, now, uh, on your left, my right, is Goodwin Hall which is the largest of the frosh dorms." "Now, it is all one-room triples but they do have in-room cable so I would definitely put this down as my preference." " Dorms look okay." " Yeah." "Nice refugee-camp vibe." " Okay, folks, right this way, please." " Howdy." "Can we go now?" "I am starving." "We haven't seen the departments yet." "They're big and brown and blocky like every other building here." "It's like they built this place with an endowment from Lego." " Let's go get a blintz." " So this is Walker Plaza." "Okay, now, every year the seniors gather here they wrap themselves from head to toe in toilet paper and they do this kind of mummy walk around campus." "It's just really totally hysterical, ha, ha." "I will give you a thousand dollars if you tell me you're kidding." " Will you please be quiet?" " I would if this wasn't so boring." "Oh, my God." "Don't mind my father." "He had a stroke recently." "Very sad." "Edna?" " I'm here, boss." "Sorry about the late." " How's the morning going?" " My morning was ass, Edna." " Where the hell were you?" " Something at home needed dealing with." "So?" "We opened at 9." "Patients came in at 9." "I worked at Cedars for a long time." "And the rule was, you come in when your shift begins, rain, shine, problems at home." "I've been trying to reach you." "How can you still not have a cell phone?" "Ease up, boss." "I didn't go AWOL on you, I was a little late." "You were over an hour late." "I don't know how things worked at your last job." "But here, it's simple." "You show up, you do your job, you get your check on Thursdays." "If you can't handle that, just say the word." " You're right." " Good." "What's the word?" " What?" " How about "schmuck"?" " Excuse me?" " You heard me." "I don't need this." "I'm tired of watching you get by on your dimples anyway." "You can't quit, you're out of doctor's offices to work in." "I don't need an office anymore." "I'm moving to phase three." "By the way, next time you're at the dentist, ease off on the bleaching." "Hurts my eyes." "Okay, so this is our music hall." " Got any cool concerts coming through?" " All the time." "Last year we had a lecture from the guy who invented the Koosh ball." " Mm, good acoustics." " Actually, yeah, there's no gum in the hall." "Oh, fine." "All gone." "See?" "All right, that's it." "Go wait in the car." "Tour's over for you." "Oh, come on." "I wanna see more." "I hear they've got the fifth largest microfiche collection in the country." "Yeah, I just..." "I wanna keep this tour moving here so if anyone is tired or they just maybe wanna stay here and work out some family issues, that's fine." "Thank you." "Anytime." "Why'd you bother coming if you're gonna bag on the place?" "I thought I might get a sweatshirt." ""My son gave up a promising future, all I got was in-state tuition. "" " Come on, you're really not gonna go here." " Yeah, I might." " After all you've worked for, settle for this?" " What's wrong with this place?" "Nothing, if you're not trying to get into Juilliard." "Know the chances of getting accepted there?" " Yeah." "Better than you do." " No, I don't think so." "There are 4000 kids applying, and only 30 spots for piano." "The slightest loss of focus and the next kid gets your spot." "You can't even give yourself the option of failure." "Well, maybe failure's not such a bad thing." "Piano takes up so much of my life, I don't have time for anything else." "You're not supposed to be doing anything else." " You are a concert pianist." " How do you know?" "How do I even know?" "You've been pressuring me for so long, I can't remember if piano is something I wanted or something I agreed to when I was 10." "Oh, come on." "You want me to go to a school for special kids because god forbid I turn out to be normal, instead of a magazine cover." "You can blame me if you want to, but I'm trying to keep you on track and all I see right now is you getting scared." "This is when you need to trust your abilities and dive in." "Not look for some kind of escape route." "You cannot be afraid of failure." "I'm not scared of what happens if I fail and don't get in." "I'm scared of what happens if I do." "If I go to Juilliard, then that's it, one thing." "Piano." "I'll be just like you were before she died." "I mean, it took Mom dying to wake you up." "I don't wanna have to lose something to keep myself from turning into you." "Mm." " Excellent roast, Rose." " Thank you, dear." "Hmm." "Mm." "It's really good." " Also thank you." "I think." " Mm." "You know who has fine meal programs for incoming freshmen?" "Dad, I'm not going to Princeton." "Get over it." "I just can't see why you won't add one more application." "You covered all the comparable schools in the northeast, Ivies included so that rules out reverse snobbery." "Do you have something against New Jersey?" "Because outside of Newark, it's actually quite bucolic." "Oh, nice." "Let me guess." "Only New York and Boston?" "Connect the dots." "She's staying near the hub." "Shut up, Bright." "What hub?" "Man, there's a lot of good piano schools in them cities, aren't there?" "Ah, right." "So then all of this..." "All this talk of researching your options, "I got my list down" that was all about choosing your schools around your boyfriend?" "Ugh, you couldn't even add another one for Dad?" "Actually I did." "Ephram and I are both applying to Colorado AM as a safety." "Which, you know, anyone with a pulse could get in there, so..." "Now that was unnecessary." "So was he." "Well, this is plum absurd." "Not to mention disappointing." "No, correction." "I will gladly mention disappointing." "I can't believe you'd be willing to throw away whole avenues for your future for a boy." "I'm not throwing anything away." "I'm still applying to eight great schools that have everything I want, plus plenty of bumper-sticker pride for you." "Why does it matter what city they're in?" "It matters if you limit one of your options to chase after a relationship that could end." " What happens if you break up?" " We break up." "I'm not left wondering." "Yeah, by then it could be too late to transfer." "Dad, I've earned the right to choose where I wanna go." "My grades are great, I rocked the SATs, what else do you want from me?" "For you not to choose this of all moments to refer to infancy." "How is it infantile to know that something's important to me?" "It's not like I'm going around with Ephram saying we're gonna get married which is exactly what you were doing when you were even younger than me." "I know how he makes me feel." "I know it's worth making a small sacrifice so that we can stay together if we want." " Okay?" " Oh, no." "No." "No, you are not going to throw that at me and then pretend like it is reasonable." "You may have forgotten, but you tried these bleary-eyed romantics with me last year." "When you begged me to be grateful for how that Cro-Magnon understood you till I had to pump his stomach in that abandoned motel." " This isn't even close to the same thing." " Of course it is." "This is what you do." "You throw yourself into relationships." "You drop everything else." "Toss your family aside, then yourself, all for some elaborate pageant in your mind." "You've already changed your goals to suit his." "How many times do I have to tell you, Dad?" "That is not my goal anymore." "Time to let it go." "Maybe trust me for once." "Well, how can I trust you when you make decisions like this?" " Like what?" " Like you've forgotten how things change." "You think I need you to remind me?" "I found the person I wanted to be with, and he died last year." "Why should I lose more?" "Amy." "I want this to work and I'll do whatever I can gladly." "If that means pissing you off, Dad, I'm sorry but some things are just more important than you." "Round two, as promised." "You didn't promise that." "I took the initiative." "I found a case study about Bach sonatas, something about the polyrhythms." "And as it turns out, I have a son with a full classical music collection a CD burner and a flagrant disregard for piracy laws." "Actually, I'm glad you came." " Come on in." " Thanks." "Kind of quiet, isn't it?" "Oh, I know." "Charlie's doing his homework and I only had to remind him three times." "No, no." "I mean, the music." "Uh, 6:00, shouldn't you be on Haydn?" "Oh, the music plan." "I took a break." "Well, I hate to be the hall monitor here, but that's really not the best approach." "The theory is constant stimulation." "I know." "I had it on." "I played Beethoven until I could sing "Ode to Joy" in German." "I'll get it on again if that's what you tell me to do, but first, we need to talk." " We've already talked about this..." " No, no, no." "I tried to talk to you and you read me more statistics." "You're an energetic doctor and a reasonably funny guy but you've got serious listening issues." "So this time, new plan." "Follow me." "You want me to trust you." "Of course." "I want that too." "No, thanks." "The thing is you're coming up with plans to help John become himself again but you have no idea who that is." "He was a guy for a long time before he was a patient." "Did you know he lived in Bordeaux until he was 8?" "Or that he used to be a seismologist?" " No, I didn't." " Earthquake research at the university." "Weird, I know but he knew more about the front-range fault line than anyone in the state." "He practically invented the early-detection software for the entire region." "That's amazing." " Mm." "Yeah." "He was amazing." "John changed everything from the first night I met him." "He's right here." "Right now, you're the only person I have telling me not to let that one go." "And that means that I need you to know who you're trying to bring back." "So do me a favor." "If you are going to start making plans for him get to know him first." "Then I'll do whatever you say." "Come on." "John, come on." "Come on." "Come on." "Yeah." "When I get o/der, /osing my hair" "Many years from now" "Wi/ you sti/ be sending me a va/entine?" "Birthday greeting" "If I'd been out ti/ quarter to 3 Wi/ you /ock the door?" "Wi/ you sti/ need me?" "Wi/ you sti/ feed me, when I'm 64?" "You bet." "Aw." "I /ove you." "Wi/ you stay with me unti/ I'm 64?" "Yes." "This thing's impossible." "Heh, it's just your basic who-are-you and-why-do-you-wanna-come-here essay." ""Declare your intended major. "" "So music, next." "Heh, this is actually really fun when it's not yours." "Uh, except if I go to Colorado, then piano is probably not a priority." "Okay, so it's just a safety." "Check "undeclared" and move on." "What?" "Undeclared." "I just never thought of myself as one of the clueless before." "What, like the rest of the world?" "Some of us are actually highly functioning members of society." "Yeah." "Folding sweaters at mini-malls everywhere." " What?" "Now you're going?" " Yep, it's called preemptive bailing." "I'm trying to help, you're trying to bite my head off." "I see where this is going and you do not really have time for a full fight cycle so call me when you're done." "This was a good idea." " I'm full of them." "We get to tackle the whole world now." "I even like the sound of it." " Phase three." " You'll like the looks of it even better." "Wait till you see what I got planned." "It all starts right here." ""Santorini. " Greece?" "A villa on the caldera with a month-to-month lease." "Beautiful view." "I can write looking out on the Med with no problem for the rest of the day bigger than whether to hit the black-sand beach or the red." "And what am I supposed to do there?" "Wiggle around in a bikini and mix margaritas?" "You have something else in mind?" "Two applications for the Peace Corps with a pit stop in Guadalajara with Habitat for Humanity." "We could be getting roofs over the homeless in a month." "Now, hold on, hold on." "You wanna build houses?" "Then we'll help sick kids, maybe take a stretch over and see Linda in Namibia." "That's not really how I saw phase three." "I saw us slowing down, not kicking it into high gear." "Well, I can't lay myself to rest." "I gotta be doing things." "Look, I'm not out to take on the world anymore, Edna." "I can't be running around all the time." "Phase three for me, I gotta sit still." "I want you to sit still with me." "Would you at least think about it?" "Amy, this isn't gonna be another one of those make-out apologies, is it?" "Oh, hey, Dr. Abbott, uh that wasn't your daughter that I was talking about." "Amy and I, we're just friends." "I mean..." "Uh, are you looking for my dad?" "Actually, I've come to see you." "Should I be scared?" "Every day of your life." "This regards another matter." "I have a favor to ask." "A Princeton application?" "All filled out, check signed, correct postage." "She only needs to write the essay, which she could do in her sleep if she wanted to." "Which she doesn't." "I know she doesn't." "I also know that she used to." "It used to be all she could talk about." ""When I go to Princeton, I wanna live where Fitzgerald lived. "" "At some point between freshman year and her relationship with you, that changed." "Well, a lot has happened since then, not just me." "I only want her somewhere where she can explore every facet of her curiosity." "Princeton excels in everything that Amy has even the vaguest interest in." "English, Women's Studies, Biology, Dance." "She should have that." "You know that there's no convincing her of anything that's not already in her head." "I've tried, I failed." "I still have bruises." "I know but you're the one she listens to." "Didn't used to be that way, but now it is, so here I am." "That was her dream once." "Don't deny her the option of turning it down." "I can try." "Well, that's more than I can do." "Thank you." "It's good to hear, by the way." " What is?" " Your playing." "It is as good as they say." "That was an arrangement of a Bach motet, wasn't it?" "Well, it's an attempt, at least." "My teacher's got me breaking down choral structure." "He's evil." "I didn't know that you knew music." "Do you play?" "I wanted to." "But as with surgery, I was born with the ear but not the hands." "God has a cruel sense of humor." "Apparently, I'm his favorite channel." "I've been working all night on the obbligato." "Usually it just comes but when I get stuck, it could take a while." "Is that funny?" "I'm sorry." "In a way, you're so much like your father." "See, you just described what it is to be gifted and you don't even know it." "The part that you call effortless that would be the life's ambition of the less blessed and the part where it's actually a bit of work that's an argument they wouldn't be able to follow." "Well, the experts seem to disagree." "I've got paperwork from very expensive schools to prove it." "Well, that's technique." "The part that can actually be taught and graded, improved." "What you've been given, it's more like the rain." "It simply happens." "Nothing can alter its timing or course, you just have to dress for the occasion." "You know, uh, there are words to that piece." "Bach borrowed a poem by Johann Franck." " You know what they mean?" " No." "You should find out." "ook forward to that preview." "And the view right now..." "Morning." "Word to the wise, chirpy." "I don't know what flies back in la-la land but here, that temper of yours is liable to get you nut punched." "Now, let me just get my boxes and I'm a Christmas card." " My stuff is still here." " Yeah." "And your work's not finished either." "What's up with that?" "And where'd you put Mrs. Moynahan's chart?" "Maybe you didn't hear the part where I said I don't work here anymore." "Yeah." "I saw you stamp your feet too." "World-class tantrum." "Keep it up another 10 minutes, it'd count as your cardio." " If you need me to recommend another..." " I'm good." "I'm not worried." "You're not retiring, you don't have it in you." "Wanna bet?" "Ducats to doughnuts." "What, you're gonna kick back on some beach somewhere?" "You'll chew your nails off in a day." "You'll be down to finger nubs in a week." "I've watched you work, Edna." "There are people who go to their offices and the clock hits 5 and they're out of there thinking about surf conditions or whatever's waiting for them on TiVo." "The job doesn't follow them one step out the office door." "You're not that lucky." "My bet stands." "You're gonna be mad at me, but I have one more application to add." "Can you handle it?" " Are you gonna get all pissy again?" " No, it's for a conservatory." "Will and I were talking about upping my odds and he likes this place, the Curtis Institute." " Somewhere in New Jersey, I think." " You don't sound too excited." "Ah, it's not A-list, but he likes one of the instructors there." "So, what do you think?" "Can you add one more to the list?" "Jersey, huh?" "Guess I could apply to Princeton, keep the dad happy." "Two birds, right?" "Whatever works." "Heh, you are so gonna crack." " Heh, what are you talking about?" " He talked to you." "Wow, smart chick." "Major down side." "All right, don't be mad, okay?" "At him or you?" "Uh, both." "Preferably me first, if I had to choose." "But it was kind of cool." "He was just trying..." "You did kind of break his heart on this one." "Oh, look, and now you're mad." "Well, that depends, Ephram." "Do you want me to apply because my dad backed up the guilt truck or because you're worried about us?" "I don't know." "It's a lot of pressure." "You've given up things for us." "It's not like we don't fight a lot yesterday." "That barely counted." "Yeah, what if we did fight?" "Or what if we broke up?" "Or what if we stay together long enough for you to get stuck in some city with nothing to do but hate me?" "Wow." "Yeah, I know." "You really worry about that stuff?" "One of us has to." "Job was free." "It took me a long time to get here, Ephram." "You had to do a lot of fancy talking but this is what I want." "I wanna stay in love." "You." "Me." "Us." "That's not gonna change." "And so what if I'm wrong?" "It's my mistake to make." "You don't get to protect me." "You can try, but I'll just kick your ass." "It's not your job." "It's not my dad's job." "I don't need guarantees, Ephram." "You can worry all you want but I'm betting on us." "I don't like fighting." "Me neither." "I don't like compromise a lot either, but I'll take it over fighting." "So here's what I got." "Costa Rica." "They've got a Docs Without Borders outpost there, needs help with inoculation." "Forty miles south of beachside." "I type you can save the orphans." "I took my job back." "For how long?" "I'm in for the long haul." "That's not what we talked about." "I know." "I gotta work, Harper." " It's the way I'm built." " Then take the show on the road." "I wish I could, but it doesn't work that way anymore." "I've done a lot of things in my life." "Left my family, seen a lot of places but I can't say I did it with no regrets." "I didn't mean it to happen but I've put down roots now and they're here." "I came to this town for a weekend and stayed five years longer than I intended." "I did that for you." "It's been five years, Edna." "Could be a lot more." "We're good here, you and I." "For now." "I meant what I said." "I told you I felt life was talking to me." "I can try to keep my feet planted here for as long as I can but I don't know how long that will be." "What happens when time runs out?" "I'll put this away." "Thing is you can never te/ when everything you counted on might fa/ apart no matter how so/id the rock." "Nice try, Harold." "With what?" "You had him too." "You tried, he tried, everybody tried." "Call me the difficult one." "I've decided not to be mad at you for going to my boyfriend behind my back." "I just want you to have the best." "I know." "And you get major points for good intentions but your execution sucks." " It's only one more application." " Mm-hm." "I know, Dad." "Time to let it go." "Trust me, kiddo." "It's gonna be okay, heh." "I love you, Dad." "Good night." "She didn't budge?" "She didn't even blink." " She's in love, dear." " Yeah." "And how is that a comfort again?" "Oh, try not to worry." "I happen to know another Abbott who didn't apply to Princeton so he could be with the girl he fell in love with." "He turned out just fine." "I'm going up to bed." "Lose the pout and join me soon." "Rocks break." "Everything changes, even when you think you're sure, especia/y." "To be fair, if I was one of the Fates /ooking down at the best- /aid p/ans of dumb /itt/e peop/e I'd probab/y see mine and wanna mess with them too." " Can I bug you?" " Mission accomplished." "I, uh, wanted to give you this." "The gesture implies an apology." "You can skip the rest." "Well, humor me." "I've rehearsed." "I'm sorry I've been pushing you, Ephram." "I thought I was helping you get what you want." "But you're right." "There's a lot about you I don't know." " I kind of sprang the new school on you." " Well, I could have rolled with it better." "I know you're worried, but you could never turn into what I was." "You've got more than just me in you." "And that doesn't mean you can't question the plan." "And if you feel like you're giving up too much you tell me and we'll change it." "You can always go somewhere else but the truth is that when I close my eyes and I think about you in four years, I see you at Juilliard." "I know you do." "I appreciate the crazy-dad cheering section, it's just I get so stressed out." "Sometimes I forget why I'm even doing this." "The truth is, on my end, I don't know where I see myself in four years." "Well, then try it." " What?" " Close your eyes, try to visualize it." " Yeah." " Aw, what's the matter?" "Too cool to visualize with your father?" "Come on." "Picture it." "Close your eyes." "You graduate you move ahead you're happy." "What are you doing?" "Where are you?" "I'm playing in Juilliard." "Then that's what we'll go for." "That's where we'll get you." "I should get back to this." "Keeping all your options open?" "Uh, something like that, yeah." "You wanna know about me in 500 words?" "I get scared sometimes, and disappointed." "I have doubts and I /ove getting my way." "I don't /ike change, but I know it's good for me and inevitab/e." "So I we/come it as best I can." "There's a poem by Johann Franck that says it better than I wi/." ""Defy the o/d dragon, defy fear." "The wor/d may rage and quake, but I sha/ remain, singing in perfect peace. "" "Yeah, things happen." "Things you don't expect or want or /ike." "The wor/d rages and you become someone you didn't know you'd ever be." "There you are, in your c/othes, in your /ife." "This is my future." "This is me." "This is me." "And I want things I never thought I wou/d." "I want the possibi/ities a schoo/ike Princeton can afford." "A p/ace to grow meet new peop/e." "A p/ace to be surprised when /ife turns out to be nothing /ike I imagined." "And to be gratefu/ for it in perfect peace."