That day there was only enough prayer / & blood for one of us to walk out.
-- Narrator (Almost Summer (Again))

Importance: After Moth and her family get into the car accident on their way from New York to Virginia, they all go to the hospital. Moth says that Aunt Jack came and prayed for them, but that only one person could survive. The language employed in this line suggests that Moth is the only family member who did not die. This stanza, therefore, foreshadows the revelation at the end of the narrative that Moth is a ghost. The moment also contributes to the author's explorations concerning loss and loneliness.

I tug my spirit back into my skin. / I will myself into stone.
-- Narrator (Boy With Long Black Hair Shows up in Homeroom)

Importance: On the first day that Moth encounters Sani, she is immediately enamored by him. She notices the way he moves his body and holds his face. She is not simply attracted to his physical...