In the ambiguous ending of the novel, Lowry blends together Jonas' present situation and his memories so that we don't know if we are reading about a memory or about Jonas' reality. However, because Lowry's style has been lyrical whenever a memory has been transmitted, and because here at the end of the book her style is not lyrical but straightforward, we can assume that Jonas is actually experiencing what we read. Also note that in the second-to-last paragraph in the book's final chapter, Jonas hears — "for the first time" — what he knows is music. Because he never received a memory containing music from The Giver, we can assume that he is not reliving a combination of the sled memory from Chapter 11 and the Christmas memory from Chapter 16. His and Gabe's experience here at the end of the book seems more real than not.
But what happens to Jonas and Gabe? Do they die? Is Jonas really dreaming? Do Jonas and Gabe actually reach a house with colored lights? Are Jonas and Gabe back in their community? Have the people in the community changed because they now have Jonas' memories? Lowry leaves all of these questions unanswered. By concluding the novel so ambiguously, she allows readers the freedom to choose their own endings.
