The First Stone

“He doesn’t remember she’s gone. That way, she’ll always be alive for him.”

Leeza talks with Mrs. Clayton about Mr. Harris’s failing memory. He constantly asks for Maggie, his wife, but can’t remember that she is dead. Leeza thinks that, in a way, this is a benefit. In his mind, Maggie never dies, so he never has to mourn her. This contrasts with her grief regarding her sister's death, which is always on her mind. Leeza doesn’t have a chance to forget Ellen’s death.

“Maybe they were wrong. Maybe there was plenty she had to prove. Like there was a reason why she was still living and breathing when her older sister, Ellen, had stopped doing both six months ago.”

Leeza thinks about why she chose to work at Silver Meadows instead of in easier places like most of her classmates. Ellen is a huge reason. She is trying to prove, among other things, that she can provide comfort to people. She may be able to improve their lives at the end, which is something she didn’t have the time to do with Ellen.

“Just because they don’t fit with the others don’t make ‘em less important.”

Nan tells Reef that the rocks that don’t fit into other categories are special, like him. He is as important as anyone else, even though he doesn’t fit neatly into a category. The quote shows that she intended to be an effective, nurturing mentor and was capable of it. Tragically, her influence was short-lived, given her untimely death.