'When I was in high school,' Muriel said, tapping her foot at Edward, 'my teachers told me I should go to college.But,well,Ididn't. That was because of Norman, mostly. My ex-husband, He was just dying to marry me, you see, but we were awful young to get married. I was seventeen. He was eighteen.'
On the second lesson they had done walking to heel, and now in the third lesson Edward was supposed to be learning to lie down and stay. It was not going well. Edward just looked away when Muriel gave the command, which was two taps of the foot. In between telling Macon about her ex-husband Norman, Norman's dog, Norman's mother,and Norman's mother car, Muriel had to keep pulling Edward's front legs out from under him and forcing him to lie down.