Unsheltered

Back in the present, Nick dies quietly in his sleep. A week later, Willa feeds Dusty and examines the baby-food jar holding some of Nick’s remains. Dixie, the dog, sleeps under the table, seemingly near death herself. Willa misses Iano, who flew the rest of Nick’s remains to his sister’s house in Arizona. Beforehand, Willa and Tig stole some of Nick’s ashes out of the urn, intending to bury them in the Vineland cemetery as promised. It is April, and Dusty has grown into a happy little boy. Willa feeds him pureed vegetables, remembering how she was advised to hold back on solids when her own kids were small.

Iano calls from Arizona and immediately asks about Dixie. Willa’s plan is to bury the dog under one of the two trees when she dies. Iano reports that his Greek family is, as usual, behaving as though they’re on a soap opera. His sisters feel guilty that Willa had to deal with Nick at the end of his life. Iano complains about having to sit between an overweight couple with a yapping dog who fought the entire flight. Willa has made progress on their house’s historic registry application. Chris Hawk has found an architectural specialist to date the house for free. Iano claims nothing is free.

After Nick’s death, Willa set up her office in his room. She is secretly drafting a book proposal about Mary Treat’s friendship with Thatcher Greenwood, having discovered more tidbits from archived newspapers, including a public debate and a murder trial. She is stunned by Vineland’s unwillingness to accept Darwinism. Now, on the phone with Iano, Willa reminds him that Tig intends to dig up the yard for vegetable beds. Tig and Jorge plan to move into the old carriage house in his backyard. Additionally, Tig has found homes for Nick’s leftover medical equipment, shocking Willa with her resourcefulness. Iano objects to Tig’s plans, despite Willa’s reminder that they were married and parents at her age.

Willa is surprised to be in Tig’s good graces. Tig is getting a phone as the first step toward possibly becoming Dusty’s legal guardian. Iano is staying in his niece Artemisia’s old room. Art is small but mighty, like Tig. Iano complains more about the lack of food on the flight to Arizona. Willa lets him go on, thinking of when she can return to her book. Tig will care for Dusty when she gets home, connecting to the child in the way Willa hoped Zeke would. Willa now has power of attorney over Dusty, meaning she could give Tig custody at any time, but she wants Zeke’s blessing first. Willa hangs up with Iano, feeling hopeful about their fortunes.

Peakesbury, the architectural specialist, arrives. Within an hour, he dates the house to the year 1880—five years after Thatcher Greenwood lived there. The house’s bricks are a non-standard size not used until 1880, when the Dunwiddie brickyard opened. Willa insists that Thatcher lived in the house from 1874 to 1875. Chris Hawk corroborates this—1875 was the year Landis murdered Carruth. Thatcher’s correspondence even mentions the two trees. Peakesbury doesn’t dispute these facts, only the notion that the house Thatcher lived in is the one standing. Thatcher’s original house must have been demolished. Without the house’s association with a person of historical significance, Willa’s plans for restoration aren’t viable. The facts don’t care about Willa’s wants or needs.

Some days later, Willa, Tig, and Dusty take Nick’s ashes to the cemetery. They bring a picnic as cover for their illicit activities and toast Nick’s self-confidence and vulgar vocabulary with some ouzo. They’ve traded Dusty’s expensive baby items for more practical things, including a new stroller and cloth diapers. Willa feels Tig is nesting in her own way and that she’s bonded with Dusty in the way Zeke never did. Tig digs a hole for Nick’s ashes. She’s also brought a wedding portrait of Nick and his late wife, which he kept close at all times. Willa cries for the first time since Nick—and her dreams for the house—died. She never knew how much Nick looked like Iano. 

Willa wants to look for Mary Treat’s grave. Tig, who spends lots of time in the cemetery, knows where it is. Mary’s headstone is covered in lichen. Willa longs for discipline and passion like Mary’s and Thatcher’s. Joseph Treat’s grave is next to Mary’s, but there’s still a lot of space between them. She outlived him by over 40 years. Willa and Tig sit while Dusty naps. Tig finds the cemetery comforting because of all the lives that have literally been planted there. She likes the idea of coffins degrading so the dead can find new life as trees. Additionally, the dead remind Tig to be patient as she waits for the old ways of thinking to die out and make room for new ideologies.

Seeing a family plot, Tig says happiness comes from low expectations. Other people’s tragedies put one’s own life into perspective. Willa tried to raise Tig to follow her dreams. Tig replies that she watched her parents sacrifice community to follow their dream of security which never materialized. Frustrated, Willa questions what Tig would do differently with Dusty. The house’s likely demolition has Willa on edge. Tig says that, when the permafrost melts, most people will be unsheltered. Willa cannot believe in this vision of the future. Tig isn’t trying to hurt Willa—she’s just trying to point out that the rules of life have changed, but few are willing to admit it because they’re scared of a “used-up planet.”

Tig claims that Willa and Nick want the same things: a nice house and a good future for their children. Consumerism, she argues, is ingrained in society. Tig feels less invested in that type of success, as Zeke’s taunts always made her feel like she had no reason to dream big. Willa feels she failed Tig as a mother, but Tig is grateful for her own adaptability. She wants to look after Dusty in the new world of scarcity that’s coming. Again, Willa can’t accept this vision of the future. But Tig claims it’s already here and that the free market trumps morality. Zeke knows this and still participates in the harmful system. The only alternative, Tig suggests, is to make use of what others waste.

Willa asks for a specific example of the gratuitous waste Tig is talking about. Watching the street, Tig in 30 seconds counts four cars carrying just one person. In Cuba, there are designated people dressed in yellow who coordinate rideshares, making travel more efficient. This is how Tig met Toto. Willa can’t imagine giving up control this way. Tig reminds her that individualistic thinking produced their current climate crisis—a reality that most people don’t realize.  Walking home, Tig leans on Willa and reminds her that there are always other places to go. Willa feels she might die without a roof over her head, but Tig tells her to “look for blue sky.”