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is what Adam would say, time and time again.
    Until she learns to control herself, control her moods, this is what life will be like for her. It doesn’t have to be this way. She is a selfish, petulant woman who needs to be reined in. Her commitment is to her sadness, to herself, when it should be to the collective.
    Mostly, Avery was just quiet and wanted to be left alone, but she did have mood swings. Swings from deep sadness to anger. Her sadness made her withdrawn and listless. It made it difficult for her to fulfill her responsibilities to the group. Difficult to bathe and eat and sleep. Her anger made her defiant and nearly always got her into trouble with Adam. Twig had made a habit out of trying to chase the pendulum of her mother’s moods. Anticipate which way they would swing next.
    “What’s going on?” Twig whispered as she took a seat between Sophie and Ryan at breakfast.
    “New girl,” Sophie said, lifting her chin toward the center of the circle where Yasmine, Sophie’s mom, was approaching. “Meeting before breakfast.” She leaned in toward Twig conspiratorially. “My mom told me she’s from America.”
    “I helped to bring her in last night,” Twig whispered. She felt important sharing this information with Ryan and Sophie.
    “What? Really?” Sophie said, raising her eyebrows in surprise. “How did that happen?”
    “Quiet, everyone,” Yasmine addressed the group.
    “More later…” Ryan said, nodding his head toward Yasmine, who was starting the Meeting.
    “It’s time to begin.” Yasmine had to clap her hands together several times. It was a very large group, and no one could wrangle them like Adam. People stamped their chairs on the floor to signal quiet.
    “Let’s give our newest member, Anna, a big warm round of applause.” The room thundered with applause. “Anna, welcome!” Yasmine flashed a warm smile toward Anna, who smiled shyly in response. She looked so different from the night before. Without the clothes and the makeup, standing awake and alert, Twig was surprised to see how young she really was, maybe only a few years older than Twig. She looked uncomfortable but much more put together than she had the night before. Several people walked up to her and gave her an embrace, which she accepted stiffly. Twig, Ryan, and Sophie stayed in their seats, watching.
    “Please tell us who you are. Tell us your story,” Yasmine prompted Anna.
    “I’m not sure what to say. I’m sorry,” Anna said.
    “First of all, you never have to be sorry again. That’s the beauty of being here, of being one of us.”
    Anna covered her face with her hands. “I’m embarrassed,” she admitted. “I’m not very good at speaking in front of a crowd.”
    “Please, dear. Don’t think of us as a crowd. Think of us as your Family. Why don’t you start by telling us about your upbringing?”
    “Okay,” Anna agreed with a small nod. “I was raised in a very strict Korean family,” she began. The group nodded at her encouragingly as she spoke. “There was a sort of prescribed path for me from early on: school, good grades, medical school, become a doctor and get married.”
    “That must have been really difficult. Such intense pressures put on you as a child. It also sounds to me like no one listened to what Anna wanted,” Yasmine said thoughtfully.
    Anna laughed and shook her head. “No. What I wanted didn’t really come into play. I mean, my parents loved— love me, they—”
    “They love you with conditions,” Yasmine corrected her sympathetically. “They love you if you twist yourself to become who they want you to be.”
    “Yes, I guess you could say that. Adam keeps telling me that.” Anna looked thoughtful for a moment as she turned the idea over in her head.
    “May I say something?” Farriss, Sophie’s father, rose from his chair in the circle to speak.
    “Of course, darling.” Yasmine smiled at him.
    Farriss looked at Anna with warmth in his eyes. “You are so