Overture: Lily Pads Summary and Analysis

Anne talks about her childhood at length. She is the child of atheists but likes it when she has the opportunity to attend church. She says she pretended church was foolish to please her father who was raised by missionaries in Tokyo and despised Christianity. Her mother sometimes attends midnight mass but Anne's opportunities to attend church are largely limited to when she goes with a Catholic friend or her grandparents.

Anne says her parents are intellectuals and all their friends are intellectuals. Their attitude is that only the ignorant believe. Anne says she prayed at night because she knew someone was listening and that she always believed. She also says she never told a soul.

Anne retreats frequently to the home of her best friend, Shelly. Anne and her family live in a castle while her...