This Tender Land

Odie falls asleep on the train. When he wakes up, he finds himself in another rail yard. Finding a diner, Odie decides to use the money that Emmy told him to put in his boot weeks earlier, but a man in the diner pays for Odie’s meal.

Odie catches another train and again falls asleep. When he wakes up, he sees that the train is heading the west, not south. Odie gets off at the next stop. Hoping for directions, Odie approaches two men by a fireplace. The men seize Odie and go through his pockets. Realizing that they intend to molest him, Odie removes the money from his boot, demanding that they return his harmonica. When they do so, he throws the bills into the fire and runs away in the ensuing confusion. Feeling more alone than ever, Odie whispers Albert’s name.

Two days later, Odie arrives in St. Louis. He passes through a Hooverville far larger than Hopersville. Unsure of his next move, he visits a post office, hoping to receive a letter from Maybeth. While there, he tells what he remembers about the street where his aunt lives. They direct him to the intersection of Ithaca and Broadway.