In the sermon Miriam listens to at synagogue, the rabbi says that “[l]ife is not simply what happens to us. Life is what we do with what happens to us.” What do you think she means by this? What did Miriam and Kate do with the circumstances they were given, the failing motel?
How would you apply this quotation to your own life? Can you think of a time you moved beyond mere circumstances to do something about them? What is one small thing you can do with your life now to live more fully or show love to those around you?
Write a poem inspired by this quotation to hopefully inspire yourself or others that even when life seems out of our control, we always have choices to make about what we do with it.