The Four Winds

Loreda and Elsa sit on the porch swing, staring at the blighted and snow-covered land. Loreda apologizes for blaming her mother after Rafe left, and she offers to get a job. When Elsa responds that “there are no jobs” (151), Loreda once again suggests they move west. Elsa refuses, however, arguing that the land is still their best hope, meager though it may be.

Spring brings hope that the drought will finally end, and for the first time in a very long time, the house brims with optimism. As they dance to Tony’s fiddle, they hear the first few drops of rain. Soon, it becomes a downpour, and they run outside to relish the life-saving water. That night, they celebrate Loreda’s 13th birthday. Rose passes around the family talisman, a penny Tony found in the streets of Sicily, a sign that he and Rose should move to America. Loreda refuses to make a wish on it, however. She doesn’t believe in the power of luck. Tony, Rose, and Elsa see the damp earth and the small green shoots protruding from the ground, and hope surges in their hearts at last.