Fairview Memorial Park is a cemetery on the northern edge of Sowell Bay where Tova visits the memorials of Will and Erik. Its manicured order—curving paths, flawless grass, and rows of headstones—stands in quiet contrast to the unresolved facts of Erik’s death and to Tova’s reserved way of grieving. At Will’s grave, she says aloud for the first time that she is selling the house.

Setting and Grounds

Tova’s final errand takes her from Elland on a journey of nearly an hour to the cemetery. She arrives on a lovely afternoon beneath a clear sky; the gates stand propped open, and a winding footpath crosses the lawn in gentle curves rather than a straight line. The grass is meticulously trimmed around the identical stones. The setting’s careful neatness gives the visit a composed, almost welcoming surface, even as the graves hold losses that Tova cannot resolve through appearances.

The Sullivan Memorials

Will’s stone is warm from the July sun when Tova kneels beside it and traces its engraving. The inscription identifies him as a husband, father, and friend, using only half of the space available. Tova had declined the cemetery coordinator’s suggestion to add more: to her, the brevity suits Will, whom she remembers as a simple man.

Erik’s headstone stands next to Will’s, although Erik’s body was never recovered from the sea. Tova had not wanted a marker, but Will insisted. She resents that the stone commemorates Erik on dry land and that its lettering gives his name incorrectly, omitting her maiden name, Lindgren, from his full name. She has sometimes imagined throwing the headstone from the end of the pier, but recognizes that she cannot act on that impulse. The marker thus preserves Erik’s memory while also fixing an error that sharpens Tova’s sense of what remains unknown and unfinished.

Tova’s Visit and Its Significance

A third stone in the row is blank and reserved for Tova. The cemetery’s application asks about her wishes, including whether she wants a service. Though she has already made her preferences clear in her legal documents, she worries someone—particularly Barb Vanderhoof—might arrange a service regardless. She would accept a marker but prefers no service, a distinction that reflects her wish to determine how her own death will be marked.

During the visit, Tova sees Mrs. Kretch and her great-granddaughter picnic among the graves and speak to a deceased family member as though he were present. Tova has never spoken aloud to Will’s grave; she does not believe his body can hear her. After the women leave, however, she turns her attention to Will’s stone and tells him, “I’m selling the house, dear.” The words make the cemetery more than a place of remembrance: it becomes the setting where she voices a consequential change in her life, even while remaining unable to summon tears.