Summary

04.32. Early one spring morning, Sara rises in the coolness and feels the anticipation of warmth and sunlight. “As spring comes alive, my body is slowly revived” (145). The paragraph ends: #calmbeforethestorm

Sara arrives at the hospital, taking a breath of fresh outdoor air before going inside. She hears a cry of pain and follows it to its source, finding a woman in the process of having contractions, about to give birth. Narration reveals the woman is her sister. The section ends: #pain #nowayback.

06.14. Sara describes the increasing intensity of her sister’s labor pains, marveling at how it is even possible that something as large as a baby’s head could come through as small an opening as a vagina. The midwife coaches them both to breathe as Sara notes her sister’s intense focus. “My sister can no longer control...