Coeur d'Alene Reservation

The Coeur d'Alene reservation is where the narrator lives with his mother and other members of the Coeur d'Alene tribe. It is located in northwestern Idaho in the United States. When the narrator was seven years old, his uncle Hector left the reservation to travel to Spokane, but never returned. The narrator and his mother live on the reservation along with three cousins who live in poverty.

Funeral

The funeral for uncle Hector is a place where nearly the entire tribe comes to mourn him, despite his disappearing forty years prior. The narrator remarks that the empty and open casket generated a lot of jokes among attendees. For the narrator, the funeral for his uncle is an event that allows him to confront the extreme loss he has experienced in his family and to begin to move forward.

Spokane

Spokane, Washington is the location of the...