I stopped trying not to cry.
Beside me, Mom began crying too.
Ethan looked toward Denise.
“And I don’t think biology is meaningless either. I wanted to know where I came from. I still do. But knowing where you come from isn’t the same as knowing where home is.”
Denise nodded once.
Very slowly.
Ethan looked down at the speech he had abandoned.
“I was supposed to say that intelligence is mostly curiosity plus persistence.”
A faint laugh moved through the audience.
“I still think that’s true.”
He smiled.
“But sometimes curiosity finds answers you weren’t actually looking for.”
Then he looked directly at my parents.
“And sometimes adults need to answer questions they hoped would disappear.”
He stepped back from the microphone.
For a terrible second, nobody moved.
Then Dr. Feldman began clapping.
The audience rose.
I remained seated because my legs would not work.
