Gossamer

The next morning, the woman asks Toby how they will “deal with an angry boy” (33), as it turns out that the letter she received was offering her the opportunity to foster a boy. She had offered to foster a little girl because she thought that she would be able to share her interests in knitting, reading, gardening, and baking with her. The 72-year-old knows that this hypothetical little girl would come from a difficult background and perhaps have behavioral problems, but she felt prepared for this eventuality because she was a handful for her mother when she was a child. She considers the rules she’ll have to set for things like bedtime, homework, and chores. The woman wonders aloud, “[w]hat does an eight-year-old have to be angry about?” (34). Although she considers refusing to take in the boy, she reminds herself that the arrangement is only for a few weeks. She informs Toby that a boy named John will arrive on Friday and that they will need to be patient with him.