Clarissa celebrates life because she has not had to face Richard’s illness and the demons that come with it. She has never been the type to judge others too harshly, as evidenced in her interactions with Walter. Even when she feels attacked, as by Mary Krull, she keeps her thoughts to herself and tries to understand the other person. She doesn’t judge Laura either, even though Richard portrayed Laura as a monster sometimes. Now Laura is just an old woman, and Clarissa understands that Laura has had a complicated life and has reasons behind all of her decisions. She fears living a meaningless life by not pleasing everyone. She expected more happiness to come her way “There is still that singular perfection, and it's perfect in part because it
