Trust

The author uses the narrator’s encounter and brief relationship with the unlucky man as the narrative soil for her explorations regarding trust. As an eight-year-old girl, the narrator primarily puts her faith and trust in her parents. This is why the narrator is able to see her three-year-old sister “Abi’s whole display” with the bleach as a mere attempt to get her parents’ attention (289). Because she can trust her parents to know what to do and to resolve the issue, the narrator does not have to worry that Abi is in real danger.

After the family arrives at the hospital, the narrator is then able to trust that she is safe when her father tells her to stay in the waiting room while he and her mother attend to Abi in “the consulting room” (287). Her parents in turn trust that the narrator is safe...