A baby's funeral urn has been lost. A dog has bitten off a girl's nose. The abandoned butterflies have been set free. The doctor has diagnosed a fatal illness. Mary Clyde's stories explore not so much what has happened already but what happens next. Sometimes the most difficult part of life's misfortunes is trying to find a way to go on. Characters ask, How does it matter? What does it mean to survive?

These questions are explored by men, women, teenagers, and children in an environment that is hostile not only to the heart but also to the body. Illness bristles through the book, magnifying emotional undercurrents.