The death of a patriarch, Grandaddy Lipscomb, and a series of bad harvests spell the end of the farming era for an American family. As the new leaders of the Lipscomb family, a young man named John and his father decide to convert the old farming land into pasture and move their tenants up to a smaller estate with cotton fields. Two of the residents, an old black woman named Mub and her caretaker daughter Glow, have lived there nearly as long as Grandaddy and the Lipscombs hesitate to tell them they have to move. One day in December, John finally heads down to old Mub’s place and tells her that they’re moving her and her daughter up to the cotton estate. They discuss how this land is no longer as arable as it used to be after so many river floods, and she tells him of the time she spent a night in the oak tree during a particularly high flood. John says that he’ll get his cousin Curtis to help move them next Friday morning, but she adds that he should come with him, because Curtis is openly racist. That Friday morning, John and Curtis drive to old Mub’s house. John has always hated Curtis a little because of his cruel expression, job as a truck driver instead of farmer, and his bullying when they were younger. When they get there, Curtis purposely hits the house with his truck and then shouts slurs at Mub and Glow. They get ready to pack them up, but Mub says suddenly that she can’t go because she can’t leave the only place she’s known her whole life. Curtis gets angry that she’s telling them what to do, and when Glow stands up with her, he attacks them. John and Curtis fight and draw their knives, but stop before going any further and Curtis drives away. After a few minutes, John too begins to walk back, feeling joy that he is still young and the morning is beautiful.