Summary

Summer House – In a series of similarly structured paragraphs that each begin with the phrase “Here is” or “Here are,” the author describes several aspects of the family house – its atmosphere; treasured items; birds; her mother’s gravestone; the place where she saw her mother holding one of her (the author’s) sons. She then describes the children playing, one last child searching for the others, “her hand lingering on the doorknob” (159).

Reconstruction – The author and Ginny share their grief about their respective parents (Ginny’s father died recently), and their confusion and pain in the aftermath of their respective surgeries, the author revealing that the surgery to reconstruct Ginny’s removed breast has gone wrong. In their conversation, they comment that they are not sure which pain (i.e. grief pain or recovery pain) they are feeling.

Red Face – The...