Wild Bird

Wren spends the first four weeks of camp refusing to talk about her feelings in therapy or write about them in her letters home. The days are spent on hiking and studying subjects such as math, astronomy, and biology. Every so often, the group strikes camp and participates in trust-building exercises. Wren hates these, especially when she is blindfolded and led about by a partner, but Hannah is patient and kind with her. Hannah also opens up to Wren and shares her own past; Wren appreciates this and wishes that she could find a way to return Hannah’s trust. One day, after the latest trust-building exercises, Tara assigns them to choose between journaling, group-sharing, or telling a partner about an experience of broken trust, whether they felt betrayed or broke someone else’s trust themselves. Wren and Hannah partner up, and Wren finally talks about Meadow, crying as Hannah reaffirms that Meadow was not a good friend.

Shortly after Wren’s confessions about Meadow, she receives more letters from home. On the previous mail day, she got a letter from her father describing his own camping experiences as a child, and a letter each from Annabella and Mo, but nothing from her mother.