Far From the Tree

Grace, Maya, and Joaquin drive to the bank to open the safe deposit box after spending the day with their aunt Jessica. When Jessica takes his hand, Joaquin feels like “he [is] holding his mother’s hand” (349), and when he arrives at the bank, he is reminded that he has the same name as his dad. When Joaquin opens the safe deposit box, he finds “photo[s] of him and his mother” (351), and he is overwhelmed with emotions. He realizes his mother wanted him, and they had a life together. He even finds a photo of his mother holding him while she is pregnant with Grace and one of his mom and dad at prom together. Joaquin decides that this is “the greatest gift anyone ha[s] ever given to him” (353), and he takes all of the photographs with him as he and his sisters drive back home. When they get to Grace’s house, Mark and Linda are standing in the driveway. Joaquin is shocked and realizes that “no one had ever come looking for him” (354) like this, not even his own mother. He apologizes to Mark and Linda for everything and breaks down crying again, but they wrap him up in a hug and assure him they’re not angry with him. Joaquin calls them “Dad” and “Mom” for the first time, and they hold on to him and don’t let go.

The second section of the novel (Chapters 28-30) is titled “Landing.” Months later, Maya goes to visit her mom in rehab. She is nervous, but after “months of family therapy and one-on-one therapy and talks with Claire and Joaquin and Grace” (359), she decides she needs to see her. She is surprised to see her mom looking so healthy, and as they catch up, Maya’s mom apologizes for “all the things that [she] put [Maya] and [their] family through” (361). She promises that she has made big changes and is ready to come home and give Maya and Lauren the life they deserve. She wants her daughters to be proud of her and not remember her “like [she] used to be” (361). Maya tells her mom that she went to see her birth mother, but she learned that her bio mom passed away years ago. Maya says that even though Melissa was her birth mom, she will always love her adoptive mom because she raised her, and “even though [Maya’s] still really mad at [her mom]” (363), she will never stop loving her. Maya allows herself to cry, and her mom promises to come home soon, “where [she] belong[s]” (363).

Mark and Linda adopt Joaquin, and they throw a “combination adoption-eighteenth birthday party” (364) at their house. Maya, Grace, and Jessica attend with their families and significant others, and Joaquin thinks more seriously about his future. He imagines becoming “a therapist like Ana” or “a social worker” (366). As he thinks about all of the people who have come into his life in the past year, Joaquin realizes that he is surrounded by family members. He has started taking classes at his local community college and is learning Spanish. During the party, Grace starts crying when she notices that there is “a framed photo of Joaquin and Melissa that’s now hanging above the staircase” (367). Maya explains that Grace is emotional “because of tomorrow” (368), and she teases her sister about her relationship with Rafe. Suddenly, Birdie arrives at the party with a gift. Joaquin apologizes for pushing her away, and although Birdie says that Joaquin hurt her all those months ago, she confesses that “there’s a piece missing” (370) when Joaquin isn’t in her life. She and Joaquin agree to talk more later, and they hurry to join the group photo of the partygoers. As the photographer sets up the shot, Joaquin thinks about Melissa and “hopes he can make her proud” (370).

The next day, Grace meets Catalina, Daniel, and Milly in the park. She “doesn’t know if she’s scared or nervous or just plain terrified” (371), but she knows that she needs to do this. Grace has started attending a support group for birth mothers. Although her parents were initially upset that she went to see her birth mom without telling them, Melissa’s photos open the door for Grace and her parents to have a conversation about her own adoption. They admit that they were “[worried] that Melissa would take her back” (372) early on in the adoption, and they “didn’t want to lose [her]” after “finally getting [her]” (372). Grace thinks about Melissa often and thanks her for “choosing these two people to be her parents” (373). Grace has also decided to let go of her anger toward Max and move on with her life. Maya, Joaquin, and Rafe all text her to say good luck, and as she gets out of her car and heads into the park, she starts trembling. Catalina greets her and leads her to where Daniel and Peach are waiting. When Grace sees her daughter, she notices that she has “Maya’s eyes, Joaquin’s nose and jaw,” and “Melissa’s hair” (374). Grace calls out to her daughter, who sees Grace and smiles at her.