The House We Grew Up In

Content Warning: This section includes the possibly triggering topic of sexual abuse and incest.

5 February 2011

Lorelei believes that Jim is the only man who fully understands her. He is empathetic because there is a connection between his drinking and her hoarding. As a child, he was neglected by his mother. Lorelei describes it as “an endless cycle. I’m sure your mother had her own stories, her own bad experiences and so it goes on” (377). Her own early life consisted of a series of tragedies: her stillborn sister, her father’s aggression, and learning that her mother was raped by a family friend, who also assaulted Lorelei. She punched him when he turned up at her mother’s funeral, and she notes that these tragedies left their marks: “The atmosphere, always there like a sinister fog” (377). She married Colin to have babies and undo the trauma of her past. Instead, new secrets and silences emerge. She hopes that the cycle will end with Megan, who is a better mother.

14 February 2011

Lorelei emails Jim on Valentine’s Day. She is suffering from diarrhea and is unable to eat. Rory no longer has a proper email account.