Kitty’s Arrival and Sunday’s Legacy

Mothering Sunday

This coda connects Sunday’s childhood abandonment to her adult work welcoming foundlings at Treetops Children’s Home.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Home for Foundlings A Home for Foundlings from "Mothering Sunday". A Home for Foundlings A dream becomes a household Sunday and Tom establish Treetops Children’s Home with Lavinia’s support.

A Home for Foundlings from "Mothering Sunday". A Home for Foundlings A dream becomes a household Sunday and Tom establish Treetops Children’s Home with Lavinia’s support.

A Home for Foundlings A dream becomes a household Sunday and Tom establish Treetops Children’s Home with Lavinia’s support. Sunday’s experience of the workhouse informs a home arranged around safety, education, and care. Children arrive gradually The home takes in babies and young children who cannot live with their own families. Sunday builds a routine of nursery care with Zillah and Cissie, offering the stability she lacked as a child.

A New Baby on the Doorstep A New Baby on the Doorstep from "Mothering Sunday". A New Baby on the Doorstep An unexpected arrival Sunday and the maid Em’ly discover a small bundle at the entrance to Treetops Children’s Home.

A New Baby on the Doorstep from "Mothering Sunday". A New Baby on the Doorstep An unexpected arrival Sunday and the maid Em’ly discover a small bundle at the entrance to Treetops Children’s Home.

A New Baby on the Doorstep An unexpected arrival Sunday and the maid Em’ly discover a small bundle at the entrance to Treetops Children’s Home. Inside is a newborn girl, accompanied by a letter asking the home to care for her. Generosity without a name The note identifies the child as Katherine and includes money for her care, but does not explain who her family is or why she has been abandoned. Sunday focuses first on welcoming her.

The Name Kitty The Name Kitty from "Mothering Sunday". The Name Kitty A child received as a person Sunday calls the baby Kitty and holds her tenderly.

The Name Kitty A child received as a person Sunday calls the baby Kitty and holds her tenderly. Tom finds the letter and money, while Cissie and Zillah prepare to bring her into the nursery. Care begins immediately The household organizes a cot and feeding rather than questioning whether it has room. Kitty is received as a child who belongs, reflecting the principles Sunday has carried from her own history.

A Nursery of Belonging A Nursery of Belonging from "Mothering Sunday". A Nursery of Belonging The home makes room Cissie settles Kitty beside the other babies, while Sunday longs to hold her again.

A Nursery of Belonging from "Mothering Sunday". A Nursery of Belonging The home makes room Cissie settles Kitty beside the other babies, while Sunday longs to hold her again.

A Nursery of Belonging The home makes room Cissie settles Kitty beside the other babies, while Sunday longs to hold her again. The nursery has become a place where children of different ages are fed, taught, and watched over. Sunday sees herself in them Each child has been separated from a natural family for a different reason. Sunday’s own history makes her especially attentive to their need for more than shelter: they need to know they are wanted.

The Story Continues The Story Continues from "Mothering Sunday". The Story Continues A new generation welcomed Kitty’s arrival shows that the foundling home will continue receiving children long after Sunday’s own childhood.

The Story Continues from "Mothering Sunday". The Story Continues A new generation welcomed Kitty’s arrival shows that the foundling home will continue receiving children long after Sunday’s own childhood.

The Story Continues A new generation welcomed Kitty’s arrival shows that the foundling home will continue receiving children long after Sunday’s own childhood. Her name and unknown origins create a new story without changing the care she receives. A promise fulfilled The child left outside the door is met by adults who open it and take her in. Sunday’s life has turned an experience of abandonment into a lasting practice of welcome.

after 1886

December 1896

the night Kitty arrives

near the coda’s ending