Chapters 27, 28 and 29 Summary

The narrative returns to present day and Naomi considers reading Aunt Emily's papers once more but is interrupted by details related to Uncle Isamu's funeral. Naomi is weary of the burden of Aunt Emily's words and outrage over so many years and Naomi struggles with the purpose of digging up the past continually. Naomi thinks back to a conversation with Aunt Emily several years ago about the repatriation of Japanese Canadians which essentially destroyed so many families. Naomi herself admits that she has not kept in contact with anyone from the days in exile and feels fragmented in some ways by the gaps in her personal history. Aunt Emily knows of only one person who ever returned to Vancouver and no one who successfully recovered any possessions. Naomi likens Aunt Emily's "words, all her papers, the telegrams and petitions, are like...