Chapter 16 Summary

At the powwow, Shawnee participates fully, earning points in every round, participating in the traditional festivities and feasting on her breaks. She dances her way to placing as one of the four finalists in the traditional women's and shawl dance. As Shawnee waits for the drums to signal the beginning of her final dance, she has a memory of her father. He is standing facing their old car, and when he turns around, he is holding a butterfly. It is dead but still beautiful, and he rubs its wings along Shawnee's neck and arms, rubbing the element of its wings into her skin. He tells her, "Ask the butterfly for help, for grace." Shawnee feels rejuvenated and filled with all of the potential for growth that a butterfly has. She is eight or nine at the time, and her father picks her up...