Chapter 34

Summary

• Silas messaged Yara to learn some of her grandmother's recipes.
• They cooked together in Josephine's kitchen and made hummus and stuffed grape leaves.
• Yara showed Silas how to roll grape leaves by comparing it to rolling a cigar.
• Yara enjoys cooking with Silas but needs time alone to write in her journal.
• Silas noticed Yara's restlessness and inquired about her well-being.
• She explained her distraction was due to journaling and pondering the past.
• Silas expressed interest in hearing about Yara's childhood and family.
• Yara was hesitant to share personal details, feeling it was a difficult topic.
• Silas had been open about his past, including his first experience with a man.
• Yara contemplated why she found it hard to open up to people, relating it to her upbringing.
• Silas inquired about Yara's relationship with her husband, Fadi, and how they met and married.
• Yara discussed cultural norms surrounding marriage and meeting her husband through their fathers.
• Silas was curious but nonjudgmental about Yara's marriage process.
• They talked about divorce in their communities and Yara described it as taboo in her culture.
• Silas wondered out loud about the consequences of seeking a divorce in Yara's family.
• Yara emotionally envisioned her family's negative reaction to a hypothetical divorce.
• Yara questioned her own role as a wife due to her ability to talk more openly with Silas than Fadi.
• Silas offered reassurance and personal views on the importance of connections for happiness.
• Yara disagreed, highlighting self-reliance and the challenge of trusting others.
• Yara and Silas concluded with a reference to William's influence on Silas's beliefs.