Opening
Ten months after the novel’s climax, Alice Michaels returns to the hill above Trzebinia with her family to fulfill [Alina Dziak]’s (/books/the-things-we-cannot-say/alina-dziak) last wish. Carrying a small wooden box holding the ashes of Alina and Saul Weiss—and a tiny leather baby shoe that belonged to Saul’s daughter, Tikva—Alice oversees a burial that reunites lives once torn apart. The ceremony closes the historical wound and anchors the present-day family in a shared, living legacy.
What Happens
Alice arrives in Poland with her husband Wade, their children Callie and Eddie Michaels, and her parents. Eddie confidently guides them on his iPad using Google Maps, a quiet marker of how far he’s come. At the gravesite of Tomasz Slaski, they meet Emilia Slaski and her extended family. Emilia’s niece, Agnieszka, explains that they have all come because Alina’s sacrifice made their very lives possible.
Alice breaks down when she sees the new plaque Emilia has commissioned. Beneath Tomasz’s name now appear Alina Slaski, Saul Weiss, and Saul’s first wife and daughter, Eva and Tikva Weiss. The stone literally and symbolically gathers these lives together at last, correcting the record the war shattered.
A multi-faith memorial follows. Father Belachacz and Rabbi Zoldak from Krakow stand side by side; the Rabbi speaks of grief, love, and sacrifice before chanting the El Malei Rachamim. Hearing Hebrew in this place, Alice feels a “tsunami of grief and gratitude.” She places the box of ashes into the earth; the priest and Wade cover it with soil. The act completes the promise and affirms the novel’s central arc of Love, Sacrifice, and Loyalty.
Afterward, Alice steps away to reflect. She has begun writing a book about the journey and no longer defines herself only as a mother—she has a voice and a purpose. Her marriage with Wade has steadied; Eddie is thriving, bonding with his father and managing school. Then Eddie softly repeats Alina’s familiar line—“Eddie darling, do you want something to eat?”—and Alice feels a shiver, as if Alina’s love brushes past one last time. The family continues traveling through Poland, embracing difficulty as a tribute to the sacrifices that gave them this life; Alice resolves to honor her ancestors by living fully.
Character Development
The epilogue crystallizes each character’s arc into hard-won peace and clarity.
- Alice: She moves from anxiety to agency, keeps her promise to Alina, and discovers a sustaining purpose in writing—an embodiment of Family Legacy and Intergenerational Connection.
- Eddie: He navigates the terrain and the social moment with calm and awareness; echoing Alina’s words signals a deep, intuitive bond with his family’s story.
- Wade: He becomes an attuned partner and father, connecting with Eddie on Eddie’s terms and offering Alice space and steadiness.
- Emilia: As gracious matriarch, she gathers her family, commissions the plaque, and ensures both families are united in memory.
Themes & Symbols
The epilogue breaks generational silence and builds a common language of remembrance. In a single ritual, the past and present speak to each other: the Jewish prayer rises where it once could not, and a Catholic priest stands beside a rabbi. Alice’s choice to write ensures the story persists beyond memory, while Eddie’s calm navigation and echoed line show a family that can finally communicate—fulfilling Communication and Silence.
By uniting faith leaders at the grave, the scene offers a vision of healing after atrocity, aligning with War, Trauma, and Survival. The living stand as proof that sacrifice bore fruit; the dead receive the dignity denied them. The gathered generations—American and Polish, Catholic and Jewish—turn legacy into responsibility, carrying memory forward with grace.
Symbols
- The multi-faith service: Reconciliation made ritual, honoring both Alina’s Catholic faith and Saul’s Jewish heritage.
- The plaque: A permanent record that binds Tomasz, Alina, Saul, Eva, and Tikva together, repairing the fractured narrative of their lives.
- Eddie’s echoed words: A tender sign of intergenerational presence, suggesting love and memory move beyond death.
Key Quotes
“Tsunami of grief and gratitude.”
Alice’s phrase captures the double tide of mourning and relief: sorrow for all that was lost, gratitude that faith and family can be honored openly in the very soil where they were once threatened.
“El Malei Rachamim.”
The rabbi’s memorial prayer lifts the dead into communal remembrance. Its presence at this grave sanctifies the past and signals a future in which memory is not suppressed but sung.
“Eddie darling, do you want something to eat?”
When Eddie repeats Alina’s line, time folds. The moment feels like a benediction—Alice receives a final reassurance that love persists, and the family’s story continues in the child’s voice.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
The epilogue resolves the novel’s central mystery and fulfills Alina’s final request, transforming private pain into shared remembrance. It shows the living remade by truth: Alice finds her voice, her marriage rebalances, and Eddie flourishes. As the culmination of the dual narrative traced in the Full Book Summary, this closing chapter ties the threads of sacrifice, faith, and family into a single, hopeful mandate: honor the past not by dwelling in it, but by living the present to the fullest.