The Work You Do, the Person You Are

It was a beautiful house, too, with a plastic-covered sofa and chairs, wall-to-wall blue-and-white carpeting, a white enamel stove, a washing machine and a dryer—things that were common in Her neighborhood, absent in mine.

What is enamel?

• any smooth glossy coating that resembles ceramic glaze

• spend thoughtlessly; throw away

• payment for service done

• coming from deep within one

Part of my pride in working for Her was earning money I could squander: on movies, candy, paddleballs, jacks, ice cream cones.

What is squander?

• causing hardship

• spend thoughtlessly; throw away

• payment for service done

• any smooth glossy coating that resembles ceramic glaze

But a larger part of my pride was based on the fact that I gave half my wages to my mother, which meant that some of my earnings were used for real things—an insurance-policy payment or what was owed to the milkman or the iceman.

What is wage?

• causing hardship

• offensive

• spend thoughtlessly; throw away

• payment for service done

The pleasure of being necessary to my parents was profound.

What is profound?

• showered with love; shown with excessive affection for

• offensive

• worn away as by water, ice, or wind

• coming from deep within one

I was not like the children in folktales: burdensome mouths to feed, nuisances to be corrected, problems so severe that they were abandoned to the forest.

What is burdensome?

• causing hardship

• worn away as by water, ice, or wind

• gathering or bringing together

• showered with loved; shown with excessive affection for

I was not like the children in folktales: burdensome mouths to feed, nuisances to be corrected, problems so severe that they were abandoned to the forest.

What is nuisance?

• eager attention

• offensive

• coming from deep within

• gathering or bringing together

They are loved, doted on, protected, and helped.

What is doted?

• gathering or bringing together

• worn away as by water, ice, or wind

• showered with loved; shown with excessive affection for

• eager attention

I wanted to refuse, or at least to complain, but I was afraid She would fire me, and I would lose the freedom the dollar gave me, as well as the standing I had at home—although both were slowly being eroded.

What is eroded?

• gathering or bringing together

• worn away as by water, ice, or wind

• gathering or bringing together

• eager attention

Still, I had trouble summoning the courage to discuss or object to the increasing demands She made.

What is summoning?

• any smooth glossy coating that resembles ceramic glaze

• eager attention

• coming from deep within

• gathering or bringing together

I gave him details, examples of what troubled me, yet although he listened intently, I saw no sympathy in his eyes.

What is intently?

• gathering or bringing together

• any smooth glossy coating that resembles ceramic glaze

• eager attention

• coming from deep within one