An American Marriage

Dre now shares the memory of when he and Celestial first make love. They drive to Eloe to attend the funeral of Roy’s mother. The service is emotionally draining. Celestial performs “Jesus Promised Me a Home.” “Singing, she wounded and healed both” (149). Big Roy is devastated. At the cemetery, he refuses to leave without attending to the burial itself. He does not want the cemetery’s work crew to bury his wife; rather, he shovels the heavy wet dirt into the open grave himself: “This is personal. Just me and my wife” (152). After the service, Celestial and Dre go to a bar. Celestial drinks too much and in an unguarded moment confesses to Dre how tired she is of being alone, of her in-laws, of Eloe itself. Prison, she admits, was never supposed to be part of her life. Back at the hotel, when Dre walks Celestial back to her room, he steps in. When he hears the click of the hotel door, he knows what will happen. Their lovemaking is soothing: “We didn’t fall into each other’s arms like in a movie […] We came to each other with joy on our lips” (159).

Roy picks up the