We saw the women walk back our way, and I followed Mother outside. Their children were running endless figure eights around them. Mother tried to push me towards them to play, but I wouldn’t leave her side. Cecilia and Sally were engrossed in conversation.

“May went to a wonderful camp this summer. It’s run by the same Girl Guide leaders she’s with right now. You should sign Ann up next year,” Cecilia said.

“Yes, I saw the flyer. They were camping somewhere near Spokane?”

“Is this a Girl Guides’ camp?” Mother piped up.

“Yes, it is,” Cecilia answered curtly before turning back to her friend. “Sally, I also wanted to tell you about this beautiful room divider that Bob brought home from his business trip. It’s quite ornate. Hand-painted and Oriental looking. It’s quite fetching and provides a bit of a break between the dining room and living room. I just love how a little exotic touch can add so much to a plain room.”

“Sounds fascinating!” said Sally. “David and I have a room divider in our master bedroom, but we’ve gotten into the terrible habit of throwing clothes over it. It’s plain and functional—certainly not from overseas.”

Mother shifted from foot to foot, swaying as if she had a baby on her hip. It was as if she was getting ready to jump into the conversation but was weighed down by ghosts.

“Dinner is simmering in the Crock-Pot,” Sally said, ignoring Mother. “So it couldn’t hurt to take a quick walk over with you to see this room divider.”

The two women clomped away in their boots like horses who had just spotted a juicy apple. Mother was left standing on the sidewalk as if she herself was a ghost. It was only after I tugged at her pants that she looked down.

Mother tried for weeks to join the women’s conversation as they strolled by, but sometimes she didn’t know what Cecilia and Sally were talking about. They would discuss food Mother had never eaten or seen before, home decor, and the summer activities they planned, like water skiing. When we went to the library, I watched Mother look up cookbooks, interior decorating magazines, and the encyclopedia in order to understand the women of Sparwood. By the time Mother finally got it, the women would have already moved onto a new mystery for her to decode.

Mother’s curiosity about these women’s lives led to the three of us embarking on some interesting culinary adventures. Bea and I would help her bake, make jam, and roast peppers. Her masterpiece was her braided bread with homemade raspberry jam. Mother made everything look easy. Even Father enjoyed some of the sweet treats, despite how unfamiliar they looked to him.

Mother’s overtures, however, never garnered any warmth from Cecilia and Sally. The women looked for ways to shake her off like a buzzing fly swarming their well-coiffed hair. They would pre-empt Mother’s entrance into their orbit, protecting themselves from any foreign bodies.