21

Summary

• The chapter describes a busy period on a cherry farm where sweet and tart cherry harvesting overlap.
• During this hectic time, workers come together to operate a mechanical shaker to harvest the tart cherries.
• The process involves laying out tarps, shaking trees, collecting cherries on a conveyor belt, and removing debris with tennis rackets.
• After the harvest, the characters spend a day resting by the lake before beginning six weeks of farm maintenance in preparation for apple season.
• Maisie, a character on the farm, goes to the house for a meeting and returns with Sebastian, surprising the narrator.
• The narrator and Sebastian share a moment of reunion, acknowledging the time that has passed since they last saw each other.
• Sebastian is introduced to the narrator's daughters, Emily and Nell, and reminisces about his brother Duke's wish to live on an orchard and have a daughter named Emily.
• The chapter reveals Duke, who drowned, had once tried to buy the farm and eventually secured a place in the farm's cemetery.
• The narrative discusses Duke's relationship with the farm and its owners, and how he found peace thinking about being buried there.
• A lunch is shared revealing that Duke's television fame indirectly helped the farm financially, a fact not previously known to the characters.
• Reflections on Duke and the farm's history lead to the narrator considering her own life choices and the beauty of the farm.
• Sebastian and the family bury Duke's ashes under an oak in the cemetery, followed by a moment of remembrance and contemplation.
• The family begins to discuss other matters, including upcoming wedding plans for Emily and her fiancé Benny.
• The narrator reflects on the continuity of family and farm life and envisions a future where the next generations could also be part of the farm.
• The chapter ends with the narrator contemplating offering Sebastian a place in the farm's cemetery alongside his brother.