I had forgotten my slippers beside the couch out in the hall.I stood beside the door, waiting for Simi to call me or give me any indication. “Ayesha...��”, I heard Simi call out. I did not reply. “Ayesha, it is alright. It’s my friend. You can come out”. I felt relieved as I heard her. Relieved and happy, I slowly stepped into the hall.The new girl was as tall as Simi. She was also dressed in the staff uniform. She was much fairer and looked beautiful. I realized by the uniform that she was also. Dammit, school lasted for nine months, so I could lose on the order of $16,200 over the school year. Why was life so unfair!? That was almost 20% of my potential annual income, and I hated the prospect!On top of all that, my whole business world came crashing down one day in late August when Mom was cleaning my room. She was dusting my bookshelves when she had a accident and knocked a book onto the floor. She was startled when money came gushing from the pages of the book. Yes, I was still. ‘That’s what it says on the door, lady. What can I do for you?’ I know what I would have liked to do, but figured getting her name first would be polite. ‘First tell me who you are.’ ‘Smith, yeah, Joan Smith.’ ‘OK, Joan Smith, now what’s on your mind?’ Uh huh, Smith and I was Rockefeller. ‘I need help, protection. You do protect people don’t you? How much will it cost me?’ ‘Yup and it’s a hundred a day plus expenses.’ She was young and pretty and very scared. I saw her face drop as she opened. I hope we can devote this entire day towards mapping out some 'ground rules, ' if you will. I don't think we can, or should, sit in a circle all day, thrashing out one issue after another. I think we ought to convene, spend a decent amount of time working together, and then take breaks and do something else. Sometimes we should have the children with us. Sometimes we should have only Amy, or maybe Amy and Janice. Sometimes we should work alone. How does that sound?" There was agreement all.