The Patient Summary

Ramona wakes up the next morning to a quiet house. At first she thinks her family has left her alone, but when she hears someone moving in the kitchen, she assumes Mrs. Kemp has come over to watch her. She is surprised when it is her mother who comes into her room. She is worried that her mother has not gone to work and that she will lose her job. Her mother reassures her that someone has filled in for her.

Ramona stays home from school and watches television. She is amused by the commercials, but when she sees a cat food commercial with a cat eating dry food without making any crunching sounds, she realizes the commercials are lying. This makes her cranky. She is feeling a little better than the day before, and her mood brightens when a girl...