What separates adults from childrenWhat separates adults from children? Don't think about the obvious, age or height. Be creative. What do most adults lose the ability to do? We stop imagining and exploring unusual possibilities. Too often adults are bound by rules; rules of probability, logic or fact. Do you remember when you were a child? Anything was possible, the rules of logic didn't apply, they didn't limit you and if you found an adult capable of dreaming with you or even shocking you with his perspective of facts, then you had found a hero. In Charles Baxter's short story "Gryphon" Mr. Hibler's fourth-grade class finds such an adult; the substitute, Miss Ferenczi. Not all students choose to see Miss Ferenczi as a heroine, but Tommy does. As a substitute teacher, Miss Ferenczi intrigues, encourages and challenges Tommy to train his mind and think for himself. Before we can understand Tommy's fascination with Miss Ferenczi, we must know who Tommy is. Where does it come from? What forces shape his world? Tommy is nine years old. He grew up in a small town where everyone knows everyone. Tommy knows this city inside and out. When he gets on the bus Tommy sees no surprises; he knows "by heart every barn, every broken windmill, every fence, every ammonia tank" (103). Life is very predictable. In fact, life is so predictable that when Mr. Hibler gets sick, the class knows that the substitute teacher will come from "a group of about four mothers." (6). Every aspect of life in Five Oaks, Michigan (6) was conventional, expected, and downright boring. Therefore Tommy is intrigued when a stranger enters the classroom and introduces himself as a substitute (13). Tommy observes Miss Ferenczi while having tantrums... in the middle of the paper ......and thinking what you like" (40). This newfound freedom allows Tommy not to be inhibited by fear when Miss Ferenczi reads the tarot cards. When a child, Wayne, full of fear and doubt, receives the "death card" (125), he panics and tells the principle his head and reacts violently (136). Tommy has learned Miss Ferenczi's lessons well. Some students in the fourth grade class will remember her Mr. Hibler will remember the replacement for "Mars" (10). The students will remember the teacher who predicted Wayne's early death (128). Tommy will look back in years to come and remember Miss Ferenczi as the teacher she taught him to be an individual, to question everything and think for himself..