There was a girl who lived next door to me a couple of years ago.  She was beautiful in her own way.  She had long hair that shone a lovely auburn beneath the sunlight and she smiled often.  She dressed immaculately, usually applied her cosmetics moderately, and was never rude or unpleasant to anyone unless provoked.  She was just delightfully different from everyone else I knew at the time.  She had a way about her in public situations, but when she was alone--that's what set her apart in my eyes.  She would often sit on her back porch around suppertime and watch the trees sway in the wind.  She never really smiled during those times.  She was contemplative.  She would sit on the steps with her knees drawn up to her chin and would rock side-to-side.  I would watch her from my seat on a stump in my backyard.  She mystified me. 
    One evening in the early spring, she waved me over. ...