What do you do when you've slapped your daughter in the heat of the moment the night before her fifteenth birthday, and this action causes your daughter to take your keys and disappear? Well, if you're anything like Laura, you'll sit down and write to your daughter and try to explain to her that you know what it was like to be a fifteen year old. That you weren't always a mom who has no idea how to relate to a teenager. You weren't born strict, you became that way to protect your daughter. That you'd give anything to be able to relate to her, but every time you look in her eyes, you see the coldness that keeps you isolated and not able to reach out to help her. That you've known love, you've felt the pain of loss, you've rebelled because your parents couldn't, wouldn't, understand either. And you'll worry and you'll wait and you'll pray that your little girl will be home safely so you can see her on her fifteenth birthday.


A beautifully written, well paced short story, Bishop nails the evocative tone perfectly, conveying the angst and eagerness to relate to a teenage daughter exactly. Also well spun are the tales of Laura, Liz's mom's youth. The pain she experienced, the river of doubt, mistrust and sadness that separated her from her own parents. I finished this book in one sitting. I look forward to much more from George Bishop.