Sfinkter did what he did. I needed a reason. I needed to believe that this man wouldn’t be so cruel. If he was really as nasty as he appeared, then what were all those people that he mentioned really like? Even the other teachers thought he was great. There had to be something more to him. He did it to prepare us for the “real world,” for things to come. Once he did what he said he was going to do with my book, it would prove that he did want to help his students and not just put them down to build himself up. By the time I got in the door, I’d made that excuse fit quite nicely. It had to fit. If it didn’t, what would that say about everyone he’d told me about who looked up to him and were his close friends? What would it say about me, that I would defend such a person? No, I thought. Whatever Mr. Sfinkter is doing, he’s doing it for the best. Preparing us all for the disappointment that’s bound to come in life. At home that disappointment was everywhere. Dad worked for a construction company and the only time he talked about his job was to bitch about the boss.
