Midnight Without a Moon

On the morning of their baptism, Queen is hesitant about entering the water. It is said that anyone who is disingenuous in their claims of having been saved will choke once they are submerged, but Ma Pearl insists that Queen proceed with her commitment. Rose, too, is apprehensive; she hasn’t learned to swim and fears slipping out of the reverend and deacon’s grasp and drowning in the lake. She watches the youngest initiate, gaining confidence as she progresses toward the shore behind the others in front of her. She freezes in fear for a moment, tears streaming down her face, but the reverend guides her into the water, and she keeps her eyes open against Ma Pearl’s guidance. She is struck by the beauty of the blue sky sparking through the clear lake water. Knowing she would be asked what should be recorded on her baptismal documents, Rose asked Ma Pearl to see her birth certificate. There, in Miss Addie’s handwriting, is Rosa Lee Carter. Rose decides that Rosa is what she will have printed on her baptismal record and is what she will be known as when she starts her new life in Saint Louis.