Chanda's Secrets

Auntie Lizbet arrived late Tuesday night with several bags of vegetables. The 'bus' from Tiro had run out of gas. Jonah appears from the bedroom, and apologizes for his drinking. Auntie Lizbet says to him, "So you're the new one."

Auntie Ruth arrived in the morning to take Soly and Iris to stay with her during the laying over. She managed to convince Jonah's family to provide two goats for the burial feast.

A 'laying over' is when the deceased lays in a casket in their home. Friends and family camp out in the yard, while only the immediate family is allowed inside. The next morning, everyone is allowed inside for a viewing, and then the deceased is taken to the cemetery to be buried.

Mr. Bateman has provided an open-air tent for the front yard, where guests will spend the night. Chanda, her mother, Esther, Auntie Lizbet, and Mrs. Tafa begin cleaning the house, although Auntie Lizbet and Mrs. Tafa soon tire, and sit with their lemonade gossiping and criticizing Esther, her clothes, and her jewelry. When Mrs. Tafa comments that Esther's skirt is so short, she is in danger of showing her panties, Esther smiles, and tells her not to worry - that she isn't wearing any panties. After the cleaning is done, Auntie Lizbet and Mrs. Tafa criticize the job the others have done.

Before they head to Eternal Light to pick up Sara's body, Chanda, at her mother's suggestion, loans a long skirt to Esther - who also removes some of her jewelry. After they wait with other families, Mr. Bateman finally calls out Sara's name. Chanda, her mother, and Jonah are lead to a chapel where they see Sara. Enough makeup has been applied to her face to hide her rash, and a shroud covers her balding head.

The others join them in the chapel for a short prayer, and then they trail out to the parking lot where Sara is placed in a trailer pulled by a Chevy. As they ride away in the Chevy, Chanda has a vision of the rest of them dying.