Douglas and Tom take part in another summer ritual. They help Mother, Grandmother, and Great Grandmother beat the rugs clean. Tom's imagination is apparent, as he describes the past and future stories he claims to see in the rug patterns. Toward the middle of summer, Helen Bentley, an elderly widow, purchases ice cream for a group of children. The children, Tom, Alice, and Jane, join Mrs. Bentley on her porch to enjoy their cold sweets. They are intrigued by her age but don't believe that she was ever a young girl or that she has a first name. She explains that old people have first names, even if they are rarely used, and that she was indeed once young and pretty. The children still don't believe her. Mrs. Bentley is upset,.....
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