Except Laurel defied my assumptions and overcame the pain. Although no one likes to talk about it, tragedies like this happen more than we would like to admit. Depending on how some people are raised and their emotional stability, they simply wouldn't be able to handle all the pain and guilt that comes with witnessing a sibling fall to their death. Laurel taught me to continue to be optimistic despite life's obstacles. I read the book shortly after I was diagnosed with scoliosis. The doctor told me I was lucky because I was still growing and had me wear a brace that was supposed to straighten my spine. This should have prevented me from needing surgery. The back brace was extremely uncomfortable and didn't help at all. So my scoliosis got progressively worse. I was on the verge of needing surgery when my family found a scoliosis boot camp. I went there for two weeks straight. It was tough, but I did it. The real challenge was having the motivation to do the hour of exercises every day that the doctor had prescribed me to do at home with weights and blocks. I had no motivation, I began to see everything negatively and I was in a lot of pain. But then I found Love Letters to the Dead. Reading this helped me understand that these exercises left a positive outlook on my future, when the only thing I was wasting was an hour a day.