I Can Make This Promise

Edie and her parents have a picnic at the park. As they eat, Edie’s father tells her how he found her mother’s biological family. Long before Edie was born, her parents took a trip to Indianola. They found Theodore Graham, Lisa’s uncle and Edith’s brother. He was “a very large, strong-looking man” (206) who recognized Lisa immediately. He welcomed them inside so that they could talk.

Edie asks her parents if Edith and Theo are still alive. She is not surprised when they say no. Lisa tells her, “If they were, you would’ve grown up with them” (209). They drive to Theo’s old house to continue the story. When they arrive, Serenity and Uncle Phil surprise them; Edie’s parents wanted her to be surrounded by loved ones for this difficult experience. Serenity tells Edie that she continued to hang out with Amelia only because Edie still liked her. Edie accepts that the friendship with Amelia is over but that she is with the people who really matter to her.

Lisa tells everyone her story, just as Theo told it to her in the same living room many years in the past.