Chapter 16 Summary

Fall comes again, and with the gentle rain, the dogwoods are blooming for a second time. Much of the village talk centers on Gordon and how he is doing in school. The first report is that he is having trouble adjusting, but then he gets more used to the new school and works well. The elderly in the village still hope he will decide to return to the village to live.

Slowly autumn deepens, with the colors changing and the wild geese heading south on an ancient journey. Only man, it seems, has lost his way in the natural world. Mark is coming to know Jim and the other Indians well in the loneliness of fall and winter, when man stays while the rest of nature migrates or hibernates.

For Mark's second Christmas, Gordon comes home from school, much changed. It is clear...