What are the motifs in Telling Secrets by Frederick Buechner?

The legacy of deception is a recurring idea. Frederick Buechner's mother began a legacy of deception in her nuclear family that far outlived her. When Frederick speaks of being a newly wed, he comments that both his and his wife's families suffered from the inability to face uncomfortable realities. As Frederick matured and gained more experience, he began to realize that he himself was passing the damaging behavior on to his three children.