Woman on the Edge of Time

Connie passes time in the ward by remembering her past with Claud and Angelina. She met Claud, a blind musician, at a bar while trying to find her second husband, Eddie Ramos, and get child support from him. She loved Claud, who was kind to her as well as her daughter.

Connie is upset when she finds that Sybil has been taken away and given electroshock treatment. She worries that Sybil will not know her afterward. In desperation, she calls to Luciente, who agrees to let her visit.

In Mattapoisett, Luciente and two of her co-mothers are preparing for their child, Innocente, to become an adult. The ritual, which shocks Connie, involves surviving alone in the wilderness for several days and choosing a new name. The citizens of the village joke about all the silly names they chose as young people and explain to Connie that they change names many times throughout their lives. She and Jackrabbit discuss his past trips to a psychiatric hospital, something he is unashamed of. He tells her that he is puzzled why there should be any stigma about taking time off for healing, though he does not think that Connie would visit the hospital in Mattapoisett.