This Week’s Book: The Last Lumenian by S.G. Blaise

Note: The discussion questions are directly from the author. Also, note that there may be answers that contain spoilers. Please read at your discretion.

What was your favorite part of the book?

It’s really hard to choose just one part. I guess if I REALLY have to choose I would have to say where they are rescued in the beginning and questioned about being potential spies. The banter there is so amazing!
What did you think of the writing? Are there any standout sentences?

I’m going to be completely honest, I listened to this in audiobook. Which was AMAZING. So I can’t really get too into depth about the writing style. I did really enjoy listening to it. I own a paperback copy and fully plan on actually reading it eventually. From what I heard, I think it’s amazing.
Did reading the book impact your mood? If yes, how so?

There were many moments where I cringed at the situation that the characters wound up getting themselves into. It seemed to go from bad to worse sometimes!
Which characters did you like the best? Which did you like the least?

I’m really bad with names, but I really would have a hard time picking between the twins and Lilla’s best friend. The one with honor and grace or the ones that get up to shenanigans constantly. It’s a tough call. I was the same way when it came to Ginny and the Weasley twins.
Which character did you relate to, or empathize with, the most?

Lilla. I actually have claustrophobia. So I really felt seen. It’s bad enough to go through it. It’s even worse to feel like a burden to everybody around you. Especially when they vocally tell you how inconvenient your existent is.
If you had to trade places with one character, who would it be and why?

I think I’d be Lilla’s best friend! She’s a healer. I would love to be a healer. I also feel confident that I would know when one of LIlla’s episodes are coming and be able to walk her through them.
How did the setting impact the story? Would you want to read more books set in that world?

I thought it was very imaginative. I would have liked some more travel scenes. I would definitely read more. I hope this book has many more in the series!
Would you ever consider re-reading the book? Why or why not?

Yes! I’d actually like to read the book over listening to the audio. I’d also reread when new books came out in the series as well!
Are there lingering questions from the book you’re still thinking about?

I actually have two questions. One, how much of the author’s personality went into Lila? Especially with the Claustrophobia. Two, would the author consider adding any representation from the LGBTQIA community in this series?

A contagious disease, a quarantined town ‘ – the characters in The Dreamers are facing an extreme situation. Our culture is dominated by two opposing narratives about how people respond to disasters: Some believe they bring out the worst in people, others that they bring out the best. How do these possibilities play out in The Dreamers?

I don’t really feel that there were multiple narratives. It was like the whole story was reported from a reporter who was completely unbiased to the situation. They merely reported what was going on during the entire catastrophe. It highlights the good and bad from the ones affected by the disease and the ones in charge of containing it.

What do you think of Matthew’s character? Are his actions heroic or heartless? Selfless or self-aggrandizing? Or some combination? Is it ethical to privilege the lives of one’s loved ones over the lives of strangers?

I started out thinking that this is just your typical jock. One that’s literally been training all his life. As the story goes in, it becomes apparent that he uses the athletic obsession as a crutch. It helps hide his fear of being hurt and reluctance to get close to people. He uses his intelligence as well.

How does The Dreamers differ from other books about disaster and dystopia? What does it have in common with those stories?

I am not even sure this can be considered a dystopia. Dystopian novels are at tell about a story that happens in worlds unlike our own. This was just involving one city that had an outbreak of a disease nobody know where came from. It is different because they somehow managed to contain it.

Some of the sick dream of extraordinarily vivid alternate lives. Consider Rebecca, who dreams of an entire lifetime, including a son. Do you think her dreamed-of life is somehow real? Or just a delusion? What about Nathaniel’s extended dream of Henry?

I’d like to say that it was a suggestion to the fact that there is a possibility that alternate universes exist. But I’m not very sure on that. They seem to live a full life during the time frame in which they were sleeping. It’s possible that the dreams were their deepest subconscious desires. That would make the most sense. However, the father predicted the library catching fire. It’s open to interpretation.

Why do you think Karen Thompson Walker chose to feature a large cast of characters instead of focusing on just one person’s experience? How did this choice affect your reading of the book? Did one character resonate with you more than the others?

She chose it because that’s what she wanted the focus on. She wanted to make it very clear that the entire town was going through this ordeal. It wasn’t just one person or a family. It wasn’t even small groups. It was the entire city as a whole. I found the idea of it exciting, but the execution fell a bit flat. I resonated most with Mei and the oldest daughter. I forget her name.

One of the main characters is a college freshman named Mei. How would you describe her personality? How does she change over the course of the novel?

Mei was painfully shy. She also preferred a quieter lifestyle. She would rather read a book than go off and party. I wouldn’t say she fully change. She did learn to relax around others a bit. She also drank alcohol as well. Facing her fears didn’t really change her preferences.

The Dreamers includes many parent/child relationships. What do you think of the book’s portrayal of these bonds? How does the crisis affect these relationships?

I would say “many” is a bit of a stretch. I can think of three that are fully talking about at the top of my head. It references Rebecca’s religious family, but there’s no actual interaction there. There was the couple with the baby. They were so detached from each other it was insane. Then we had the father of the two girls who was a bonafide conspiracy theorist. I feel like the crisis seemed to make all families detach from each other.

The Dreamers involves a fictitious disease in a fictitious town, but what parallels do you see in today’s real world? How do you think the government would respond to a situation like this if it happened today?

I feel like they would try to contain the situation just like they did in the story. I don’t mean to insult the government, but I don’t think they would really have the resources to contain it as quickly as it was contained in the book. Not that it wouldn’t of been unimportant. It’s just not realistic.

How do you feel about the ending of the book? How do you imagine the lives of the surviving characters will look five years into the future? How do you think their experiences during the outbreak will affect the rest of their lives?

I absolutely hated the ending of the book. It basically left it at the disease leaving as quickly as it started. There was no explanation of what happened to the characters in the story after everything returned to normal.

Obviously, Rebecca learns to live life as a mother. Maybe she’ll find someone and settle down and have the son she dreams about. The girls grow into teenagers. Hopefully, their father will have relaxed a bit to let them have a bit more freedom at that point. I think Matthew mourns the death of Mei. He winds up graduating college and moves on with his life.

All of them are forever altered though. I’m sure they get nervous from that point on if they feel any form of exhaustion. They probably spiral into fear when they have problems waking people up. Those who were affected by the disease will probably forever be leery of their dreams.

Thank you for reading!

Maximize your reading options with Kindle Unlimited. Maximize your reading time with Audible Membership.

If you’d like to contribute to my page, please send it to my Paypal. Any amount is very appreciated. Thank you! And thank you for reading my blogs. I’m honored to have you as a reader!

1) Queenie opens with our protagonist sending a text from her gynecologist appointment. Were you hooked from the first line, or did it make you uncomfortable?

It didn’t make me uncomfortable, but I can’t say I was hooked from the first line either. It just wasn’t really all that attention grabbing.

2) What were your first impressions of Queenie, and did they change as the novel went on?

She seemed a bit robotic in the beginning. Which I see now would be her just going through the motions of life. There were times she came across a bit slow. Which made me uncomfortable because it’s very obvious she’s an intelligent young woman with great potential.

3) Queenie spends a good portion of the novel in denial about her breakup, how violent her sexual encounters are becoming, and more. Why do you think the author chose to have her react this way? Does her denial make her an unreliable narrator?

I think it’s because we have become so conditioned as a society to pretend things like that don’t exist. Those that do are constantly being questioned like it’s all their fault. It’s just easier to not say anything at all. I don’t think it makes the narrator unreliable at all.

4) Queenie’s friends and family love to offer advice. What did you think of the support they gave Queenie throughout the novel? Was Queenie ready to accept help? What advice would you have given Queenie?

There were some that just thought they were doing what was best for her. They tried there best. There were some that just didn’t really act like they knew her at all. I don’t think she was ready to help. I think she needed to process everything fully first. But in a way, maybe she did. She didn’t seem to be wanting to process.

I’d of told her that the pain that she’s feeling inside is normal. That we all experience pain and loss. I would also let her know that everybody goes through things differently and she isn’t a horrible person. I’d also be there for her and support her no matter what.

5) Queenie pitches articles to her editor about the Black Lives Matter movement and attends a BLM march in the book. She’s passionate about standing up for others, but doesn’t always stand up for herself. Why do you think that is?

It’s easier to do things for others than it is to do for yourself. It’s easier to form a more level headed opinion on things when you aren’t surrounded it in it as well.

6) How do you see Queenie’s experiences reflecting the importance of both the Black Lives Matter and the Me Too movements? Discuss Queenie’s experiences at the intersection of both race and gender, and how they impact her connection to these movements.

For the Black Lives Matter, I can think of one great example. Ted confronted her while she was leaving from work. Her friend came up and defended her. There was a person walking by who automatically assumed that Ted needed the help and offered to called the cops. Even though Ted was the one harassing Queenie. There were a few other instances as well.

Whether Queenie acknowledges is or not, Guy wound up sexually assaulting her. Yes, she did agree to hook up with him at first. However, she decided she wasn’t okay with what he did and how he handled her. He took what he wanted anyways. I do see why she didn’t say anything. She would have been blamed for it. People would have said she shouldn’t have let him come to her house.

7) Queenie’s grandfather encourages her to attend therapy and tells his wife they need to learn from the next generation. How do you see Queenie’s growth throughout the novel impacting other characters’ development?

People saw the downward spiral that she was going on. They saw that she was attempting to take their advice but it wasn’t working for her. They had to accept that maybe they suppressed too much and that it did more harm than good.

8) Queenie’s past trauma isn’t revealed until the end of the novel. How did that structure influence your understanding of Queenie as a character?

It really helped me understand why she acted the way she did. It helped me empathize and connect with her better. I guess you could say that it made me see her in a new light. It made me realize that my initial assessment of her wasn’t accurate at all.

9) At the end of the book, Queenie has a conversation with her younger cousin about how being a black woman will shape her daily experiences and interactions. How does her relationship with Diana evolve throughout the novel? How do Queenie’s own experiences shape her growing relationship with Diana?

I think she was so in the bubble she was in that she didn’t realize that Diana saw her as a role model. Once she did, it encouraged her to be better and keep going. Queenie doesn’t want Diana to go through what she went through. She also doesn’t want her to think things are going to be easy.

10) Queenie’s relationship with her mother Sylvie is complicated. How do you think their relationship shaped Queenie’s other friendships and relationships?

I feel like she put everybody at a distance. She was greatly hurt by what happened and didn’t want to be hurt like that again. She also felt like she couldn’t protect her mother. She also felt that her mother should have been able to protect them both.

11) The story of how Queenie received her name wasn’t revealed until near the end of the book. How did it change the way you thought about the book’s title?

It didn’t change the way I thought of the name at all. It did change the way I saw her mother though. It showed that Sylvie really did care about her mother more than she showed.

12) The final scene takes place in a restaurant where Queenie is surrounded by her friends and family. She’s in therapy, but still unsure about her future. Were you satisfied with the ending? Why do you think the author chose to end the book while Queenie is still healing?

I am very satisfied with the ending. Queenie wasn’t fully healed yet. She can’t fully commit to a dedicated future just yet until she’s fully accepted her past. And that will take time and a lot of healing.

I think the author chose to do that to prove that a person can’t just do the right things and be cured over night. It takes a lot of time. Many wounds will be opened during the process so that they can heal properly. That’s the point I feel is shining in the end.

Thank you for reading!

Maximize your reading options with Kindle Unlimited. Maximize your reading time with Audible Membership.

If you’d like to contribute to my page, please send it to my Paypal. Any amount is very appreciated. Thank you! And thank you for reading my blogs. I’m honored to have you as a reader!

**Disclaimer** I did not write the discussion questions. I found them online and on the back of the book.

What was your overall response to the novel? What did you feel? What did you learn?

I really enjoyed this book. I have a soft sport for historical value. I did feel for the people who endured all the violence that they had to endure. I learned that both the Puritans and Indians were to blame for the events that took place.

Discuss Mary Rowlandson’s relationships with the three men in her life—Joseph, James, and Samuel. What does she give and what does she receive from each relationship?

With Joseph, she was very submissive and did whatever it was he asked. With James, she went had a variety of emotions. She was able to form her own thoughts and opinions around him. With Samuel, she was very affectionate with him. It was like Samuel was her true other half.

Mary Rowlandson lives in a society ruled by men in which women were allowed few of the freedoms that we take for granted today. Identify those constraints, discuss how they might have helped or hurt the Bay Colony’s survival, and discuss how women might have found meaning in life despite them.

I feel like the women were more or less held as prisoners. They had more freedom than the Indians did, but not really much. I’m not really sure about how it hurt. I know it couldn’t have helped any. If women had had their opinions valued then, we probably could have advanced a lot sooner and faster.

As an Indian captive, Mary feels freed from the constraint of “mutual watch,” the “relentless scrutiny of each other’s conduct required of all church members.” Discuss the idea of mutual watch as it plays out in the novel, and what it might be like to live under such a system. Can you think of any modern-day equivalents?

I find it remarkable how rumors and gossip are one of the few things that have lasted over the ages. Being well-known now is different than it was then. James the Printer, for example. He was famous back then for what he did. He’d be lost in the crowd in modern days. With mutual watch, they seemed to observe each other. They trusted each other but didn’t.

Mary experiences both cruelty and kindness at the hands of her Indian captors. Compare their behavior toward her to the cruelty and kindness shown her by her husband, Joseph, and other members of English society.

I would say that Joseph was more cruel because he knew what would hurt her and he did it on purpose. I am not justifying what the captors did. They seemed like it was to toughen her up more than anything. They didn’t care for her attitude.

Discuss the various forms that freedom and imprisonment take in the novel. What role does the sparrow play in the author’s exploration of those ideas?

Indians were free to do as they wish. The women were seen as equal and their opinions were valued. Imprisonment is a bit more complicated. In ways, being married and asked to submit to your spouses wishes and opinions is like being imprisoned. Especially if you are not allowed to leave your own yard without our husband’s permission. The Indian’s “imprisoned” her, but she wasn’t really held. She could go where she pleased as she pleased.

While living with the Indians Mary begins to find beauty, peace, and sacred mystery in the wilderness. How does she initially view the natural world and what inspires this change? Compare her experience of the natural world to your own.

Intitally she sees everything as dark and evil. As she grew comfortable with the Indians and the land, she began to see it’s true beauty. Her opinions began to change. She saw the errors in her initial opinion.

Mary becomes convinced that slavery and physically punishing her children are wrong, and she stands up to her husband Joseph on these issues. What makes her so sure she is correct to reject them? Is mere conviction enough, or is something else required?

I believe that she feels that having a slave is basically saying that the person is beneath you. She didn’t feel that anybody should be beneath anybody. In my opinion, I think it’s because she was used as a slave herself. She was taken hostage and sold. I think the impact of that experience stuck with her and she didn’t want anybody to feel the way she felt.

James Printer tells Mary, “We have both bought our redemption at a terrible price.” And Mary realizes that she felt redeemed when she followed the promptings of her heart. Discuss the many meanings of redemption in the novel.

I feel like redemption was made when one person sacrificed things to save or redeem another. Mary only agreed to write the book and let them edit it to their will to save James’ life.

The Puritan worldview differs markedly from our own. Discuss their beliefs as they relate to God’s love and punishment, child rearing, grief, the infectious nature of sin, slavery, obedience to authority, and salvation. In what ways are these ideas still part of current thought and practice? In what ways have our thinking changed?

Our thinking is different than it was then because we tolerate a lot more than we used to. If you were to sin in the Puritan era, you were shunned by everybody and couldn’t do anything. In today’s time, nobody bats an eye. People saw dancing as a sin in that time. There are places specifically for dancing these days.

Because their exposure to another culture has changed their beliefs and perceptions, both Mary and James feel estranged from their original people. Have you ever felt estranged from your own “group of origin”? Care to share your experience?

I moved to Indiana. I was there for about almost two years. When I came home, I felt like everything was different. I felt like I didn’t belong anymore. Sometimes I wonder if I made a mistake moving back home. My boyfriend loves it here though. He fits right in. We actually had a stranger think that he came home and brought me back with him.

Have you read other “captivity narratives,” either those from previous centuries or those written by recent, contemporary captives (such as Elizabeth Smart and Jaycee Dugard)? How do they compare with Mary Rowlandson’s story?

I almost said that I didn’t, but that’s a lie. I read The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison and The Cellar by Natasha Preston. For the most part, they are nothing alike. However, they obviously have violence and cruelty in common.

What do you most admire about Mary? What makes her story relevant today?

Mary was passionate about what she believed in. She was fierce and determined. She risked a lot because she felt that her opinion was right. Her story is relevant today because of how strong of a woman she was. How much of an impact she possibly made.

What do you hope to remember about this novel six months or a year from now? Do you think that some part of it will remain with you for even longer than that?

I hope that I remember that it’s okay to have your own opinions. That others shouldn’t make you feel like nothing because your opinion is different than theirs. The biggest problem our world faces is hatred and people believing that they are better than others. The message is very powerful and I hope not to forget it.

**Disclaimer** The questions were issued by the publisher. I did not write them nor do I have any rights on them.

1. At the beginning of the novel, Madeline is enraged over Ziggy not being invited to Amabella’s birthday party. Why do you think Madeline becomes so angry about such a seemingly small injustice? Do you think Madeline is the kind of person who just looks for a fight, or do you think she was justified in feeling so upset? And do you think that by tackling both ends of the spectrum —from schoolyard bullying and parents behaving badly in the playground  to displays of domestic violence in all its incarnations—that the author is trying to say something about the bullying that happens out in the open every day?

While I believe that Madeline is very strong willed and passionate, I do not think she was looking for an argument. I think she realized that excluding a child is wrong. It’s one thing for a child to do something (and he didn’t even do it at that), but for an adult to do it.. It’s just outrageous. The whole thing should have been just let go! I could see why everybody was incensed. Renatta took it too far on more than one occasion.

2. There is a lot of discussion about women and their looks.  On the beach Jane’s mom shows that she has rather poor body image. Jane observes that women over 40 are constantly talking about their age.  And Madeline says, “She didn’t want to admit, even to herself, just how much the aging of her face really did genuinely depress her. She wanted to be above such superficial concerns. She wanted to be depressed about the state of the world….” [p. 82] Do you think this obsession with looks is specific to women, particularly women of a certain age?   Why or why not?

I don’t think it is specific to just women. There’s a YouTuber I used to watch frequently named Shane Dawson who has a lot of body image issues. I also do not think it goes with any certain age. I do feel that women are conditioned at a very young age that we have to look a certain way and look that way forever and that once we age we become useless. It was worse in the past, but it hasn’t went away.

3. There are a lot of scenes in which the characters say they wish they could be violent: Jane says she wants to throw Ziggy into the wall when he has a tirade in the bathtub, that she would hit Renata if she was in front of her, and then she stops just short of kicking Harper. Do you think the author is trying to show the reader Perry’s side and have us sympathize with him? Or, rather, that feeling violent is a natural impulse but one that people learn to suppress?

It may have been her intention, but I doubt it. Anger is an emotion that we all fall victim to. None of us are innocent. I think the point is that sometimes it would be easier to just let the anger out with aggression. Sometimes it just feels more just. However, most of us realize the damage that getting aggressive would cause.

4. When Ziggy has to do his family tree, Madeline comments, “Why try to slot fractured families into neat little boxes in this day and age?” [p. 184] A lot of Madeline’s storyline is about the complications that arise from the merging of new modern families. What kind of problems exist among families and extended families now that didn’t when you were a child?

I’m not really sure that I can fully answer this question properly. I’ll try my best. I think it’s more common for people to have children out of wedlock these days. To me, that sounds really dated. I can’t think of a better way to say it. Not all siblings have the same set of parents. More so now than when I was a kid. I can’t think of anything else.

5. When Jane recounts what happened the night she got pregnant, she focuses on what the man said rather than on what he did. Why does Jane feel more violated by two words—fat and ugly—than by the actual assault? Jane seems to think the answer is “Because we live in a beauty-obsessed society where the most important thing a woman can do is make herself attractive to men.” [p. 196] Do you agree?

I do. I watched a video recently that compares little girls toys to little boys toys. The toys for girls are focused on beauty and fashion. The toys for boys are focused on superpowers and being the best you can possibly be. If you want to be noticed and respected as a woman in most places, you have to be completely into whatever latest fashion there is and constantly wear makeup and other product every waking moment.

6. The power of secrets is a theme throughout the novel. Jane remembers, “She hadn’t told anyone. She’d swallowed it whole and pretended it meant nothing, and therefore it had come to mean everything.” [p. 220] Do you think this is a universal truth, that the more you keep something secret, the more power it takes on?

I do. I have noticed that I tend to obsess over the thoughts I have. They circle through my mind constantly and make me crazy. When I articulate my thoughts into words to somebody else, it’s like it leaves me. I feel lighter and not as weighed down with the thoughts. It’s why I feel such a connection to Jane. I get where she’s coming from with her thoughts and opinions.

7. Gwen, the babysitter, seems to be the only one to suspect what is going on with Celeste and Perry. Celeste then realizes she’s never heard Gwen talk about a husband or a partner. Do you think the author intended to intimate that perhaps Gwen had had an abusive husband or partner and that she left him?  And in light of what happens at the end with Bonnie, do you think it’s only people who have personally experienced abuse who pick up on the signs?

I believe so. I don’t believe that it has to be just other abused victims. I believe that there are some people on earth who are more intuitive than others. I find that I sense things off others easily. Sometimes it becomes hard to keep it to myself. It’s hard not to act on the things I feel about certain things.

8. At one point Jane thinks she and Ziggy will have to leave Pirriwee because “rich, beautiful people weren’t asked to leave anywhere.” [p. 362] Do you think different rules apply to rich people? Do you think being rich allowed Perry to get away with things longer than would have been likely if he hadn’t had money?

I do. I don’t think that Ziggy was automatically accused of bullying due to his class. However, I do think that if it had been a more well off child that was accused, there would have been investigating into the incidents before the child was automatically considered guilty. Perry basically gloated many times on the fact that he could buy his way out of any trouble he had. If Ed or Nathan had done some of the things Perry did, they’d be locked up quickly.

9. Bonnie says, “We see. We fucking see!” [p. 421] Were you surprised to learn about Bonnie’s history?  Were you surprised to discover that all along Max had been seeing what Perry was doing to Celeste?

I wasn’t surprised to learn that Max had witnessed it. Children see and understand far more than we think they do. I was surprised about Bonnie. It definitely made me see her in a new light. I think she should have had more of a role in the story, but I get why she was more of a background character.

10. What did you make of the interview snippets to the reporter? Do you think the author used them almost like a Greek chorus to make a point?

I really enjoyed them. I feel like it added a nice enhancement to the story.

11. Madeline muses, “Maybe it was actually an unspoken instant agreement between four women on the balcony: No woman should pay for the accidental death of that particular man. Maybe it was an involuntary, atavistic response to thousands of years of violence against women. Maybe it was for every rape, every brutal backhanded slap, every other Perry that had come before this one.” [p. 430] And then Madeline thinks, “Sometimes doing the wrong thing was also right.” Do you agree with this statement?  Do you agree with what the women decided to do?  Do you think there’s a stronger bond between women than there is between men?  Were you surprised that women who ostensibly didn’t like one another—Madeline and Bonnie, Madeline and Renata—ended up coming together to help one another out?

I’m not sure how exactly to answer this question. I can’t say they were wrong for what they attempted to do. I completely get and understand why. Not only was everybody shocked with all the information thrown in their faces, but they also saw what he did. It was so obvious that wasn’t the first time he hit her. They also saw he had no remorse at all. He didn’t have remorse for practically raping Jane. However, I think they should have been completely honest. Bonnie didn’t intend to kill Perry. She snapped. She saw how he was behaving and just went to shove him like anybody would when somebody has upset them. Especially with what she went through. I’m not justifying what she did. It was wrong. She felt bad for it.

12. At one point in the book, Susi says that, in Australia, one woman dies every week because of domestic violence. In the United States, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends every day. Every nine seconds in the United States a woman is assaulted or beaten.  Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women—more than that caused by car accidents, muggings, and rapes combined. Are you surprised by these statistics? Why or why not?  Clearly, the author chose Celeste—the picture-perfect mom and/ wife as well as an educated lawyer—to be the victim of domestic violence in order to make a point. Do you think it’s plausible that someone like her would fall victim to abuse such as this?

I’m not surprised. I was a victim of domestic violence numerous times. I was lucky. I had somebody who saved me from myself. I thought I deserved everything I got. I thought I was worthless. I sometimes think I chose people subconsciously who treated me that way because I thought that was all I’d ever deserve. I think the author chose her to prove that it can happen to anybody. Just because somebody’s life seems perfect, doesn’t mean it is. Looks can be quiet deceiving.

13. Madeline comments that “there were so many levels of evil in the world.” [p. 433] Discuss the implications of this statement in light of the novel and the novel’s different storylines.

I’ll try my best here. There’s the people like Renatta’s nanny who manipulated people to get her way and get money. There’s people who abuse and bully others who they feel they are stronger than to feel power. I could go on, but I don’t think my heart could handle it.

Personal Note: Domestic Abuse, Sexual Abuse, and Bullying are nothing to be ashamed of. Our silence is the predator’s greatest weapon. If you are a victim, please reach out to somebody and get help. Don’t let anybody shame you or make you feel bad for coming forward. For those of you who suspect, reach out to the person. Pay attention and see what they aren’t saying as well as what they are.