“It’s not like I talk about him either. Not with other folks, anyhow. That’s something about our family, Lee, something rotten. We don’t talk about grief or pain. We just bottle it up until it becomes unbearable, until it explodes on us, until it’s so big and overblown it can’t help but ruin things.”

“Yeah,” I said. “I noticed.”

“It’s a terrible habit,” she said. “One we ought to break, if any one of us ever had the guts to.” She sighed again, waved a hand in front of her face like she was brushing the whole thing aside. “Anyway, Jeremiah. My one and only son. What would you like to know about him?”

“Just, you know, what he was like. All that.”

“Where to start? He was a sweet boy.” She paused, her finger on her cheek. “No, that’s not the right word for him. He was luminous, my Jeremiah, a magnet for attention. If he walked into a room, no one bothered to look anywhere else. Even in a field—even in the Hummingbird Grove—it was hard not to let your gaze fall on him. And it wasn’t just that he was a beautiful child, which he was, of course—about the most handsome and lovely boy you ever laid eyes on. It was something else about him. Charisma? No, that’s not strong enough. He was more like a whirlpool, I reckon. He could suck you right in if he wanted, whenever he wanted, and you’d be glad for the attention. That’s just the way he was.

“But oh, so smart, and so kind. He was a seer like you, except greater, more magnificent. The things he witnessed, the visions he imparted to us—it was like they weren’t fit for mortal beings. They were so full of light they could make you weep for joy. He had this way of speaking, mind you. It wasn’t so much his words but his voice, his cadence and melody. Every syllable out of that boy’s mouth was music, and when he spoke it was like he was casting a spell. Because the spoken revelation has power, more so than any words written down, that’s just the truth of it. Yes, Jeremiah was just about all I could see, that I assure you.

“Maybe it’s my fault, the way I doted on him. I know it made your mother jealous. Who wouldn’t be jealous of a parent’s obvious favorite? With their father gone and a farm for me to run all by myself, I didn’t have the time or energy to focus on the both of them. And Jeremiah was so much. He filled every room he was in with his smile, his voice. Every day your mother was left by the wayside.”