Were these children even known to the authorities, i.e., did they have birth certificates or any kind of notification to the county and the state that they had been born? (I assume they were born at "home".. ?)
The reason I ask about this is, I first wondered: didn't the education authorities there send anyone around to find out why these kids weren't in school?.. and I assume even parents of "home-schooled" children need to produce some kind of documentation that it is going on and the kids are being educated, don't they?
Then I thought, if nobody else knew about the children at all, then there would be nobody official to wonder about their education or upbringing. Duh!
My God, these girls might as well have been living on Mars, the lives they've been living. This is all they know of "normal family life," since they've had no experience of any other way to live. And since Mother knows nothing of normal life since her pre-puberty days, she's not much farther ahead of her kids.
Last edited by phesina; 08-28-2009 at 05:25 PM.
I meant," said Ipslore bitterly, "what is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile?"
Death thought about it.
CATS, he said eventually. CATS ARE NICE.
-- Terry Pratchett (1948—2015), Sourcery
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