The theme in the story is love and mother-daughter relations. Tobie's father is a bad father, who does not care about his daughter, whereas Ellen loves her. And still Tobie lives with her father.

Ellen's relationship to Tobie is very good. Jackie and Ellen raised her, until she had to move back to her father. Ellen is unsure of whether she and Jackie have done their job well or not. When Tobie comes to visit her on her birthday, she realizes that they have, and that Tobie will be all right. She and Jackie had made good parents. Ellen loves Tobie as her own daughter, even if she is not. For a moment Ellen considers what it would have been like if Tobie's friend was a girl. She believes that people choose who they want, like she chose Jackie. Perhaps she would have

Some common words found in the essay are:
Aunt El, Tobie Jackie, Ellen Jackie, Jackie Roger's, Ellen Simms, Jackie Ellen, Ellen Roger, Roger Jackie, Jackie Tobie, Jackie Tobie's, tobie jackie, ellen loves tobie, move father, jackie tobie, money tobie, own daughter, ellen roger, tobie's father, loves tobie, ellen loves, ellen jackie,
Approximate Word count = 518
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)