What does Eleanor recall as the happiest time of her life in the novel, White Houses?

Eleanor recalls her years at Allenswood Boarding School as the happiest time in her life, especially because she was the favorite of her instructor, Marie Souvestre. Marie Souvestre was a lesbian, and Eleanor seems to have had a crush on her (though this is not stated overtly). She explains to Hick that Souvestre "believed in fighting for what was right...and she believed that her girls had a moral obligation to make the world a better place" (75). Eleanor has certainly taken that lesson to heart.