Comfort & Joy

In this section, Joy is forced to come to terms with the vast gap between what she has experienced and what people say really happened. Through this struggle, she rebuilds her friendship with her sister and gains a clearer picture of what she wants.

Joy remarks, “It is amazing how quickly a bone can heal. If only the heart were as durable” (189). While her body’s process of healing moves along, she feels stuck in the realm of her heart. The disjointed healing process emphasizes the difference between the emotional and physical worlds in this novel—the body’s experience is not the reality for characters like Joy and Bobby, who connect in hidden, magical worlds between life and death. In this section, Joy battles her own mind as she tries to both hold onto the joy and love she found in Washington and let go of her obsession with it. This internal battle connects to the theme of The Mysterious Impact of Magic. As Joy struggles to reconcile her experiences in Rain Valley with her life in Bakersfield, her faith in the mystical aspects of her journey becomes both a comfort and a challenge. Her own mind cannot decide: “In the cold light of day, it makes sense,” but “God help me, in the darkness, I believe” (184). When Joy’s vision is obscured by darkness, or mist, such as it often is in Rain Valley, she more easily believes in the world’s magic and finds a sense of faith that she has long forgotten. Without access to the rainforest’s moisture and the dark environment that aligns with her innermost self, however, in Bakersfield, she instead finds her faith at nighttime. Since she reconnected with God alongside Bobby in Rain Valley, God is a key piece in Joy’s ability to believe.

As she witnesses Bobby and Daniel grapple with her absence, she begs them to “believe” (168). This plea underscores the theme of Processing Pain Through Love, as Joy recognizes that belief is the only way to maintain their connection. In this final interaction in the nonphysical world, Joy can only watch. She experiences the reality of a nightmare she later relays to her sister: “Watching life pass me by […] And here I was, stuck. Wrinkling like a dying grape, going gray, wanting” (192). Like the metaphor in which she is a dying flower in Bakersfield that blossoms in Washington, Joy compares herself to a withering grape. If she is not growing and changing, like a plant, she is dying. Yet even when Joy can only watch, Bobby and Daniel are real, albeit living without her. Without the ability to speak to Bobby, she recognizes that faith is their only connection. If either of them stops believing that what they experienced was real, they will never meet again. This idea ties directly to The Mysterious Impact of Magic, as belief in something greater allows Joy and Bobby to grow emotionally and spiritually. With the doctors and her sister urging her to ground herself in the real world, by asking Daniel and Bobby to believe, she is also reminding herself to believe and to hold faith.

When Joy wakes up in the hospital, her reconciliation with Stacey begins. The first time they are left alone, Joy makes a joke, and Stacey responds, “Stop […] You always make jokes when you’re hurting.” Joy narrates: “And there it is: […] We’re sisters. We know each other intimately. It is a precious gift that we tried to throw away but can’t really let go of” (172). Stacey sees through Joy’s defenses without trying. As Joy tries to use humor to deflect her pain, Stacey both calls her out and puts their shared past on display, refusing to ignore the fact that they know each other better than anyone else. In her narration, Joy acknowledges the fact that their closeness is a gift that they both “tried to throw away.” In using “we,” Joy takes responsibility alongside her sister for what their relationship has become. It caused her nothing but hurt for the past year, but in this moment, she sees it as a “precious gift,” suggesting that their future will be brighter. This reconciliation demonstrates the theme of Processing Pain Through Love, as Joy and Stacey’s shared love for each other helps them begin to heal their relationship and themselves. Joy also finally confronts the reality in front of her—her pregnant sister—and accepts the pain that has passed between them as something she will let go of out of love for her sister. 

As sisters reconnect, Joy sees Stacey with a depth she missed until now: “This time when I look at my sister, I see a woman I’ve never met, one who’s been through hard times […] and lives with the pain of her own bad choices” (194). Joy admits that she has never considered her sister’s interior complexity. She assumed that her sister’s life has been fundamentally easier, and her sister has assumed the same about hers. Rather than only seeing herself as Stacey’s victim, Joy now sees that Stacey, too, has to live with her choices. This moment reflects the theme of Finding Happiness By Helping Others. By stepping outside of her pain and acknowledging Stacey’s struggles, Joy finds compassion and a sense of connection that helps her move forward.

Empowered by the discovery of the white arrowhead, Joy finally decides to return to Washington, even as her fear of flying brings vivid flashbacks of the crash. Her newfound determination to reclaim her life shows the culmination of her transformation. In Rain Valley, Joy found the faith and strength to confront her pain, reflecting both The Mysterious Impact of Magic and Processing Pain Through Love. Her ability to embrace the unknown and take action, despite her fears, signals her growth and readiness to build a new life.