Summary

Chapter 53 takes place on Thursday, March 21. Joy has been in the hospital so long that papers, books, and a typewriter are scattered about. On this day, her hair has been brushed and she is wearing lipstick in preparation of an official church marriage to Jack. Warnie and a nurse serve as witnesses. This is not the wedding most little girls dream about, but Joy realizes the love she and Jack share is more important. Father Peter Bide, one of Jack's former students, is performing the ceremony. Joy asks why he decided this marriage was sanctioned when other church officials refused. Father Bide says he “asked the only source that mattered … and that was God himself” (371). He recites the marriage litany from the Church of England, then has Joy and Jack pledge their love. The nurse says she has never seen anything like...