Dear Germanna English Professor, “Don’t fly too close to the sun… you’ll burn the tips of your wings. Stay right with me. I’ll keep you safe.” –Marcella Pixley. The book Without Tess by Marcella Pixley opened my eyes to the endless limits of a mental disability. In the book, Tess and Lizzie are two close sisters who were inseparable. Without Tess is about Lizzie’s struggles of growing up with a sister who suffered from severe psychosis. Lizzie was always pulled into Tess’s delusions; Even when Tess killed herself, Lizzie almost drowned too. The book was written to show people what it is like behind a mental disability and how it affects others. A mental disability never affects just the patient, it affects everyone around them. Family, friends,…show more content… Though no one in my family has a mental disability, I have still grown up around people with one. My mother was a Paraprofessional so I am familiar with working with mentally challenged people. After reading this book I acted differently around the special kids in my classes because I knew the other side of the story. I will never completely understand the extent of a mental disability, that’s why I’m grateful for everything I have, even my imperfections. This book was a random book that I picked up in my school library in 8th grade, but I am so glad I did. It was the first book I really appreciated reading; compelling me to keep reading because the story was so intense. I was shivering and gasping because the story was so real. Marcella Pixley made me feel like I was there living with Tess and that’s why this novel is so significant to me. It taught me to be patient with others, even those without a disability because you never know what is happening at home. I learned to listen to everyone’s problems, no matter how small because sometimes just listening can make them feel better. It also inspired me to go into work with mentally disabled children as a