Summary

In Chapter 13, Aubrey is dealing with the sickness of his mother. Walking along the beach, she fell and Aubrey knew there was something wrong. He remembers how "sure-footed" his mother was and how he would follow her footsteps as a young boy (140). However, when she fell at Coney Island, she knew that illness was starting to take her. Embarrassed, she asks Aubrey to take her down to the water.

Melody remembers parts of her childhood in Chapter 14, thinking back on when she was three and Iris was packing to leave for Oberlin. She describes the room as "hot and thick" and recalls how this was the happiest she ever saw Iris (143). She reflects on how strange it is to see her parents as younger people. She kept asking, "Where we going, Iris?", and after correcting her grammar, Iris tells her that "Mommy's going...