Most of "A Matter of Faith" takes place in Buddy's mind as he tries to sort out his feelings for Uncle Kikoy and all the other members of his parents' generation who gave him a solid foundation for his life. "A Matter of Faith" begins in Buddy's bedroom in San Francisco, a place far enough away from the city where he grew up, Seattle, that he has been able to gain some emotional distance from his childhood. He believes himself to be levelheaded, to have put the traditions of his elders behind him, yet as he drives farther away from San Francisco and ever closer to Seattle, he begins to understand Uncle Kikoy and his spiritual beliefs, eventually realizing that he is very much like his uncle. The story ends with Buddy again in a bedroom, this time in Seattle. He no longer views his mother's home from...