It’s Christmas Eve and Furlong is busy getting the yard sorted for closing up for Christmas. He feels something gathering in his chest but can’t explain what it is. As he’s driving the lorry that day he realises that the lorry will need replaced and that the new windows that Eileen wanted would have to wait another year.
He can see on his deliveries that people are really struggling, yet they had small presents for him to show their appreciation and a Protestant man put a five pound note in his hand. We see how Furlong leaves bags of logs at houses who hadn’t the money to pay and a young girl tells him that her mammy always said that Furlong was a gentleman.
Furlong then takes the men to Kehoe’s for dinner and as he goes to pay, Mrs Kehoe asks him if it is true that he had a run-in with the nuns in the convent. She tells him to be careful and reminds him that ‘these nuns have a finger in every pie.’ He responds with an insightful comment, ‘surely they’ve only as much power as we give them, Mrs Kehoe?’ She reminds him that they control St Margaret’s and that if you want to get anywhere in life that it is the only school worth going to. This is a reminder of the trouble Bill can cause for himself and his family if he goes against the nuns.
Bill walks aimlessly through the town before deciding on going for a haircut at the barbers, where there is a large queue. In the barbers he thinks about Ned and how he was always there for him, watching over him and guiding him but never revealing the truth about who he was. He leaves and goes to collect Eileen’s present, which is wrapped for him in the shop.
On his way back through the town he is struck by thoughts of the curse of the River Barrow and the stories he was told by his mother. This is a reminder of the fear of the church among the local people who were scared of the power of the Catholic Church. As he continues, his mind goes back to the young girls in the convent and to the young girl who wanted to kill herself and how he did nothing to help. He continues walking and we see that he is on his way to the convent.
When he gets there and slides open the lock and calls Sarah’s name, he sees that she is locked in the shed again and he simply tells her, ‘you’ll come home with me now, Sarah.’
As they walk down from the convent they are met with people who Furlong knows but when they see Sarah’s bare feet they realise it is not one of his daughters and move on quickly. As they are walking along Sarah vomits as Furlong comforts her. As they make their way through the town they stop to look at manger, with the juxtaposition of Sarah and the Virgin Mary clear.
As they near home, Furlong is filled with questions and thought. He thinks, ‘was there any point in being alive without helping one another?’ He tells us that he has never known happiness like this, regardless of the consequences. He thinks about Mrs Wilson and her kindness and how her kindness impacted him in such a positive way.
‘The worst was yet to come, he knew.’ This line makes the ending ambiguous as we are not sure of the consequences of his actions.
Questions:
- How do we know that Furlong is well respected in the community?
- Furlong shows the value of kindness in a number of ways in this chapter. Discuss.
- Why do you think he appreciates Ned not telling him the truth?
- What does the monks cursing the river show about Irish society?
- Why do you think that Furlong decides to save Sarah?
- Why does the author mention the Virgin Mary as Sarah walks with Furlong?
- Is it a positive or negative ending? Explain your answer.
- The church’s power is evident in the final chapter. Discuss.