A young man reunites with his father, and they share a meal and a movie. Years later, he reflects on the memory as he struggles to reconcile his complex emotions about fatherhood.

When a dog discovers a dead child in a trash can, his owner seeks help from a local family man.

A young boy born into slavery meets a newly purchased slave from Africa who refuses to let go of his culture, despite the master's attempts to christianize him.

A devoted mother wants to protect her children's innocence, but this changes when her son gravely injures her only daughter.

In conversation, a Black girl recalls the day she ate a caterpillar as a child, and her mother discloses the more violent events that happened the same day.

While she prepares for church one morning, an elderly woman reflects on her tumultuous relationship with her son-in-law, a Vietnam War veteran, and her daughter and granddaughters, who she couldn’t protect from his violence.

A woman struggles with shaky faith and emotional isolation from her son, which intensify when she goes to see him in prison. After one particularly difficult visit, she faces her fears with her brother’s help.

Through conversations with his great-great aunt, a man learns the history of a formerly enslaved family matriarch. His brother’s recent arrest gains new meaning as he learns more about his ancestors.

After a woman gives birth, her husband dies and she hallucinates a laughing "chinaman." She comes to see "chinamen" as an omen of death, and goes the rest of her life fearful that she will encounter another one.

A Black singer moves her community through the power of song throughout the tumultuous 20th century as she sings everything from blues to gospel music.