Every Visible Thing

"After dinner will be her bath, a lonely affair as she is now trusted to clean herself as long as the door remains open and she calls out every few minutes to say she is okay. Her mother will put Owen in his crib, installed in a curtained-off corner of Lena's room, and her father will grade papers while Hugh watches the news."

After Hugh and Lena finally arrive at home, they prepare to relax and eat dinner. There is a comfortable, relaxing tone in this passage. Carey expresses the actions of each Furey family member as though they are rituals. Each action has not occurred yet; however, they "will" happen eventually. Each family member is engaging in some sort of activity to keep occupied and be content. There are no family conflicts occurring; displaying an ideal happy family. Although it is calm at the Furey household, there is also isolation. No two family members are engaging in-group activities.

"After being tortured by all the popular girls in grammar school, I never thought I'd have a girl as a friend. But it's too complicated to be friends with boys in high school. Most of last year I had no friends at all, besides the desperate-to-sit-with-anyone lunch partners my first month. Because I didn't act as they did to have a shadow, I got a reputation for being a loner, and it made people assume I didn't want any friends at all. Sometimes I don't." (10)

Many years have passed since Hugh walked Lena home. Lena is in high school and Hugh is missing. It is not known whether Hugh is dead or just missing. Lena is a tomboy at this age. She is "tortured by all the popular girls" and does not have many friends. She is a "loner" and at times, she does not "want any friends". Lena's character is deeply affected by Hugh's disappearance. She has no social life due to her lack of friends. Lena's current situation is "complicated" because she still chases after Hugh's "shadow". Unable to overcome the trauma of losing her brother, Lena's life is falling downhill. She starts smoking and she starts failing her classes in school