On the day of his sixth birthday, Henry roams his house, waiting for someone to notice him. His father and grandmother keep him from seeing his mother. When he’s restless, his grandmother cuffs him and he gets angry. His father sends him to spend the day with his aunt, Rebecca, who brings him on a picnic with her friend, Nathan, whom she later kisses. When Henry’s father picks him up from Rebecca’s house, he reveals that Henry has a new baby brother, Jimmy. Soon after, Henry’s grandmother dies. His mother is very sad. She tells Henry that God has given them Jimmy and taken away Grandma in return, but that doesn’t make any sense to Henry because, at his funeral, he can see Grandma right there. He’s not so sad that she’s died because she was always mean to him, but he pretends to be. December comes and it’s time for the Christmas pageant. Henry watches his father play Herod and Rebecca be an angel, and he marvels at how they can both be Biblical figures and his family members. He sits there, in awe, and sings Christmas songs.