Skylark

Maggie is visiting the Witting house with her children Rose, Violet, and Tom. She says she dreams of her “old home” and of a time when it was cool and wet. Sarah asks Maggie if it’s a daydream, and Caleb wonders what a daydream is. Sarah explains that it is a vivid, pleasant memory. Caleb thinks Sarah is speaking about Maine, but Anna knows Sarah dreams of having children. Caleb says he dreams about rain and that it will come true since Sarah dreams about it, too.

However, the drought persists, coating everything inside the house in dust. The family deepens their water conservation efforts and travels to the river to collect water for the animals. The river has dried up, and Matthew says that even he and Maggie are considering leaving. Sarah is incredulous and declares she despises the land because Jacob and Matthew “give it everything. Everything! And it gives nothing back” (39). Maggie understands Sarah’s feelings because she, too, moved to the prairie as a mail-order bride from far away. She explains that she and Sarah can’t understand the men’s ties to the land. She compares Sarah to a skylark that is unwilling to land on the ground.