The Spinning Heart

Timmy used to work for Pokey alongside Bobby and the other men. Everyone thinks Timmy is mentally slow, but he’s just quiet. While many of the men made fun of Timmy, Bobby was always good to him. A lot of men are looking for work in other countries, but Timmy won’t leave because he’s hoping to become a sacristan at his church when the current sacristan passes away.

Timmy’s Nana raised him; his mother died while giving birth to him, and his father went crazy and couldn’t take care of the kids. All six children went to live with different relatives. Timmy’s Nana “used to always be saying how she lived her whole life only over the road a small bit from the house she was born in. She’d say aren’t I as lucky as can be?” (50).

Timmy’s sister, Noreen, “had a baby who died after a few days. The doctor told her the baby wouldn’t live after it was born” (53) due to a heart defect. When Noreen insists on bringing her baby home, the nurses cry because they know the baby won’t live for long. Once the baby is home, Timmy stays outside, out of their way, hoping to guard the house against death.