Chapters 7 through 9 Summary and Analysis

Chapter Seven: God Shouts When Necessary

By 1991, Mary was 33, married with one child and one on the way. Mary had completed five years of orthopedic surgery training, and a year and a half of specialty training in trauma and spinal surgery. She accepted the position of director of spinal surgery at the University of Southern California. She enjoyed teaching and the typically challenging cases that landed at a major medical university. The family lived by the ocean, had a reliable nanny who nurtured her sons, Willie and Eliot, and she and Bill were free to pursue their successful and lucrative medical careers.

Mary felt that most of her time was devoted to her career and that she had little time left for God and family. The superwoman who handled everything with ease was an urban legend. Balancing everything was...