1. Ma

Summary

• Kya, a six-year-old girl living in a marsh in 1952, sees her mother leave their home carrying a blue train case and wearing her only pair of "going-out" shoes, which suggests to Kya that her mother may not be coming back. Her older brother Jodie tries to reassure her.
• The chapter provides a detailed description of the harsh but bountiful marsh environment where Kya and her family live in a basic shack, explaining that the marsh is isolated and has claimed the lives and livelihoods of many. It serves as a refuge for runaways and the disenfranchised, those who didn't fit in elsewhere, or had no other options.
• The next morning, Kya sits on their porch steps, waiting for her mother's return. Memories of happier times with her mother fill her thoughts. Her father is largely absent and when he is not, he is either silent or angry. Kya remembers that her mother was unusually silent and appeared bruised the morning she left.
• When it becomes clear that her mother isn't coming home, Kya's brother Jodie distracts her by playing games with her. Despite their efforts to keep their spirits up, Kya cannot help but continue waiting for her mother, even though she never cries or shows open despair.