Hillbilly Elegy

indication that our lives were about to
change came one morning when I woke
and strolled over to Mom’s house,
where I knew Lindsay and Mom were
sleeping. I went first to Lindsay’s room,
but she was asleep in my room instead. I
knelt beside her, woke her up, and she
hugged me tightly. After a little while,
she said earnestly, “We’ll get through
this, J.”—that was her nickname for me
—“I promise.” I still have no idea why
she slept in my room that night, but I
would soon learn what she promised
we’d get through.
A few days after the funeral, I
walked onto Mamaw’s front porch,
looked down the street, and saw an