Abstract:
Between your fingers you hold a stone and throw it into flowing water. The
effect might not be easy to see. There will be a small ripple where the stone
breaks the surface and then a splash, muffled by the rush of the surrounding
river. That’s all.
Throw a stone into a lake. The effect will be not only visible but also far
more lasting. The stone will disrupt the still waters. A circle will form
where the stone hit the water, and in a flash that circle will multiply into
another, then another. Before long the ripples caused by one plop will
expand until they can be felt everywhere along the mirrored surface of the
water. Only when the circles reach the shore will they stop and die out.
If a stone hits a river, the river will treat it as yet another commotion in its
already tumultuous course. Nothing unusual. Nothing unmanageable.
If a stone hits a lake, however, the lake will never be the same again.
For forty years Ella Rubinstein’s life had consisted of still waters—a
predictable sequence of habits, needs, and preferences. Though it was
monotonous and ordinary in many ways, she had not found it tiresome.
During the last twenty years, every wish she had, every person she
befriended, and every decision she made was filtered through her marriage.
Her husband, David, was a successful dentist who worked hard and made a
lot of money. She had always known that they did not connect on any deep
