Every Day

A won’t be seeing Rhiannon today; instead, A must go to his grandfather’s funeral instead. This death is clearly devastating for the family. The mother comes in to talk to Marc, to see how he’s doing and to let him know that the father is very upset. When the father comes out of their bedroom, “he doesn’t just look upset—he looks newly blind” (265). As they drive to the funeral, A can access Marc’s memories of the grandfather, remembering the fishing trips, the trips to the zoo, the holidays.

The funeral is powerful for A. S/he thinks about their own life, the fact that no one knows of his existence except for Rhiannon. A is terribly sad to think that no one will know of A’s passing from this earth. There will be no funeral, no gathering of friends and relatives. A sees all the fishermen friends of the grandfather gathered and hears the father tell stories of the grandfather, and A is crying: “No one will ever have known me or what I’ve done” (268). Of course, everyone assumes A’s tears are tears for Marc’s grandfather.

Family and friends head back to the grandfather’s house and continue to remember and tell stories of the grandfather’s life.