A Spool of Blue Thread

The accident kills Abby and the dog, despite the Whitshanks’ steadfast belief that “Whitshanks didn’t die.” Sammy, Nora’s child, doesn’t understand why Brenda won’t “come back from Jesus” (223). Amanda wishes to blame someone, while Nora blames herself. Louisa Hutchinson, the neighbor who found Abby and Brenda, tells the family that Abby sang as she died. Later, the family searches for Abby’s funeral wishes and bickers about what song to play at her service. Jeannie thinks it should be “Good Vibrations,” while Stem likes “Amazing Grace.” At lunch, Amanda makes a crack about people not eating casseroles anymore, then feels guilty when Nora affirms that she does so weekly. Jeannie begins crying when she thinks about going on the beach trip now without Abby, and how their beach neighbors might react. When Nora tries comforting her by saying that “God never gives us more than we can handle” (228), Denny refutes this by saying that people suffer greatly, daily.

Stem rifles through Abby’s papers one day, while Red reminisces about pictures and papers Stem hands him. Then Stem finds an old contract that agrees to hand him over to his birth mother should she be in the position to take him back.