Fine, not fine How much is there to give when I receive even less – no blood left in this stone. When I am alone, untended I think of times when I sat reading a book for hours when I had not many worries. I was careful then, not to provoke father’s anger or even awareness. Now that I am independent, I am my own caretaker. There is no one else here no one like my mother when she asked how I was and I lied and said I was fine. Julie A. Dickson