When the auctioneer presented her piece, Alice scrambled onto the stage, her voice loud and eager over the speakers.
“This is my lamp!” she said. “It’s a gift for all children, all over the world, no matter their pack, or their skin color, their abilities, or their language.”
I was touched by her words, so profound for a child so young. Her mother must be raising her right.
The crowd watched as Alice pulled a string, and the lampshade began to slowly turn. The paper figures adorning the shade danced hand in hand, the colors spinning across the auditorium, which filled with gasps and applause.
The auctioneer took the mic again. “Bidding starts at fifty dollars for this beautiful piece!”
I prepared to raise my hand, but another man across the room beat me to it.
“One hundred,” the man
