Three days later, I'm helping out in one of the Center's art classes. Marie, who usually leads the children's programs, is out sick. I suspect we'll lose her to another job in the near future anyway.

I lean over the shoulder of one of our regulars, an enthusiastic seven-year-old named Erin. We're working with watercolors today, and she holds up her work-in-progress.

"It's a garden, Miss Lily," she says. "Like the one in my book."

"It's beautiful. You've ...