Phoenix’s mind alters between reality and delusion (boy with marble-cake and dancing with a scarecrow) as she makes her way to town. It is helpful, even comforting, that she has moments of fantasy during such an arduous journey. The belief that her grandson is still with her is equally significant, as it provides her with companionship – “we is the only two left in the world” (paragraph 91) – and a sense of purpose. Her trips to town to get his medicine give her a reason to keep going. If her grandson is already dead, she has dealt with this loss in the same way she has faced other hardships in her life – with an unrelenting determination to keep moving forward.
