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Liz’s birth
Liz’s parents met by dealing drugs. Her dad got caught for pretending to be a doctor to get drugs. When Liz was born her dad was in prison. He didn’t see her until she was 3 years old. Her mom called him on the day she was born. -
Elementary school
She entered the first grade and didn’t really like it. She felt as if she was an outcast because of her parents. She got lice and she didn’t get much sleep at night, because she had an empty stomach. Her mom let her stay home some days and that leaded to them getting in trouble. Her sister would always bully her, and her mom often stole Liz’s school money for drugs. -
Ma’s friend Ron
Ron was Liz’s mom’s friend that gave her drugs and took care of Lisa and Liz. One day Ron picked them up from her mom’s friend Tara’s house and told them that her mom said to watch them take a bath. He did and told them to clean their privates in front of him and Lisa yelled at him and her mom found out and slapped Ron and had a mental breakdown. -
Her parent’s relationship
Her parents started arguing a lot and she often locked herself in her room. At this point was when her parents were doing the most drugs. Her mom was often hospitalized and she was blind. Liz began focusing on school more and learned how to read. She sometimes did her older sister’s homework. -
Foster Home
Her mom and her dad split up. Lisa decides to live with her mother and her friend Brick, while Liz decides to live with her father. She isn’t well taken care of there and then she finally gets taken by Child Protective Services. The other girls there make fun of her and get her in trouble. -
Liz meets Carlos
Liz meets Carlos. Liz and Carlos have a special connection. They both have family members with AIDS and drug addiction. Her friend Sam, Carlos, and her all hang out, but Liz likes Carlos. They both begin to depend on him. -
Living on the Streets
Carlos keeps reassuring the girls he will get an inheritance. They steal food from diners and ask for money from strangers. They begin to mistrust Carlos and Liz begins to miss her family. Her and Carlos develop a connection -
Losing Her Virginity
Liz loses her virginity to Carlos. Afterwards she realizes “being with him was emptier then I’d expected, more function than joy.” Liz suspects that Carlos’ money comes from dealing drugs and not an inheritance. She suspects that he is cheating on her too. -
Her Mom’s Death
Her Mom dies. Liz wrote her Mom a letter explaining that her death prevented Liz from telling her all the things she wanted to say. Liz compares her relationship to Ma to “how pearls were made.” A pearl begins with a small, painful grain of sand that an oyster turns into a beautiful gem in order to protect itself. Liz feels guilt for not being there when her Mother died. -
Losing Carlos’s Trust
Liz stops sleeping after her Mom’s death. Carlos disappears on New Year’s Day in 1997. He returns the next day and says they have a new place to live. He is doing a lot of drugs and begins leaving for several days. There is a stabbing at the hotel they are staying at and Liz begins to think Carlos can hurt her. She leaves him. -
Harvard
Liz gets a job at New York Public Interest Group. She works going door to door asking for donations- which she learned to do on the streets. She meets Ken and tries to fit in with him and his friends. Liz graduates. She contributes this to her willpower but also the kindness of teachers. Liz “officially” learns about sexually transmitted diseases- especially AIDS that ended her Moms life. Liz builds a new family with James. Her Dad also had AIDS and tells her