Opening
On a sunlit summer day at Liberty Bay, Jolene Zarkades sits on the deck while her family plays below—Michael Zarkades, his father Carl, their daughters Lulu Zarkades and Betsy Zarkades, Tami’s son Seth, and Jolene’s mother, Mila Zarkades. Physically strong again and confident with her new prosthesis, Jolene chooses a quiet moment apart for one last hard thing: reading the final letter from her best friend, Tami Flynn, who died in Iraq.
What Happens
Jolene listens to the laughter from the beach and opens Tami’s letter. Tami’s voice rises off the page—warm, teasing, intimate. She imagines Jolene reading on this very deck and wonders if her own Adirondack chair sits empty beside her. The letter’s central plea is simple and fierce: take care of Seth, and make sure he remembers who she really is beyond “Mom”—her “dorky sense of humor,” her ambitions, and her unshakable love, echoing the theme of Motherhood and Identity.
Tami also urges Jolene to keep fighting for her marriage, hoping she and Michael have found their way back to each other, a final nod to Marriage, Love, and Forgiveness. Knowing Jolene’s lifelong tug toward sadness, Tami tells her to live big and unafraid. She closes with a line that holds the weight of their service and friendship: “Play without a net, flygirl. Because even from here, I’ve got your six.”
When Jolene finishes, she glimpses Tami for an instant—laughing in the empty chair. Betsy races up from the shore with a yellow ribbon she’s found. For Jolene, the ribbon carries every name that didn’t come home—Tami, Smitty, and so many others—and turns the color from waiting into farewell. She lifts it to the wind and lets it go, releasing the heaviest part of her Grief and Loss. Betsy asks if she’s ready for the beach. Jolene takes her daughter’s hand. “I’m ready,” she says, and walks toward her family.
Character Development
Jolene’s journey culminates in action rather than argument—she reads, she releases, she rejoins. The family scene confirms mended bonds and chosen hope.
- Jolene: Moves from isolation to connection, balancing physical recovery with emotional courage; she integrates trauma into a livable future rather than letting it define her.
- Tami: Through her letter, remains a protector and truth-teller—devoted mother, steadfast friend, soldier who still has Jolene’s back.
- Michael: His joyful play on the beach and openness to Seth show the marriage repaired and the family expanded through commitment and care.
Themes & Symbols
The epilogue reframes the war’s aftermath as a living process—tender, ongoing, and communal. The peaceful bay setting answers the novel’s earlier ruptures with a plausible, earned calm. It highlights the long tail of the Impact of War on Soldiers and Families: healing isn’t a single moment but a series of choices to return to life.
Grief here does not vanish; it finds its place. Jolene’s goodbye ritual transforms pain into remembrance, allowing love and joy to coexist with memory. This is the emotional work of grief, the quiet sequel to trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)—not forgetting, but carrying differently. The renewed marriage embodies forgiveness earned through effort, aligning with the novel’s insistence that love is a practice.
Symbols:
- Tami’s Letter: A final mission and a map—naming what to carry forward (Seth’s memory, courage, love) and what to lay down (fear).
- The Yellow Ribbon: Traditionally hope for safe return, reimagined as the color of farewell; Jolene turns waiting into release without erasing honor.
- The Empty Chair: Absence made present; Tami is gone, yet her guidance remains, a steadying presence at Jolene’s shoulder.
Key Quotes
“Play without a net, flygirl. Because even from here, I’ve got your six.” Tami’s blessing recasts battlefield vigilance as enduring guardianship. It frees Jolene to live boldly while assuring her that love and loyalty still watch her back.
“I’m ready.” Jolene’s simple reply signals agency and closure. She doesn’t deny the past; she chooses the future, stepping from survivor to participant.
“the color of good-bye” By renaming what the yellow ribbon means to her, Jolene claims authorship over grief. The phrase marks the moment she shifts from holding on in pain to honoring through release.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
The epilogue serves as the novel’s emotional landing. It proves that wounds—psychic and physical—can knit when met with honesty, patience, and community. Jolene’s final acts bind the story’s core threads: friendship that outlasts death, a marriage rebuilt by forgiveness, and a family reshaped by love rather than loss. By ending on “I’m ready,” the narrative closes its circle—not with erasure, but with hard-won hope.