Housekeeping

The next summer, Ruthie begins “to sense that Lucille’s loyalties [are] with the other world” (141). Ruthie believes this was the last real summer of her life. The girls stop going to school when the weather turns nice, but they pretend to go as a courtesy to their aunt. They walk by the tracks past the unhoused people. The school sends letters to Sylvie about the girls’ truancy, and she writes letters back, blaming it on “the discomforts of female adolescence” (142). Lucille feels uncomfortable in her developing body. Ruthie thinks of herself and her sister as a single entity over the course of that summer even though her sister is morose at times. They spend most of their time in the woods, Ruthie because she likes the woods and Lucille to avoid being seen by anybody. At times, Sylvie has a fire going when the girls come home, and they like it when she scolds them for things like staying out late or not having their coats with them.

One night Lucille starts itching a lot, and she turns on the light to examine her body. At this time, they discover what their home truly looks like. The kitchen is cluttered.