The narrative flashes back to October 1946 and a character named Noah Calhoun. Noah enjoys thinking about nothing in particular in the evenings after a hard day at work repairing the house he purchased in New Bern, North Carolina. The house was originally built in 1772, and Noah has spent the past eleven months fixing it up.
Both his guitar and his memories of his father occupy Noah's time. Noah does not currently have a job, but he is not particularly concerned with finding one because he still has a few months worth of savings left. Noah has a hound dog, Clem — short for Clementine — and at 31 years old, he is beginning to feel lonely. He has not dated since he returned to New Bern.
Memories of his father include the mention of "God's music," a reference to the sounds of nature, the sounds that enabled Noah to help keep his sanity during the chaos and confusion during the time he spent fighting in a war. After drinking his tea, Noah gets his copy of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass, and quotes an entire poem.
