In the present day, Orleanna continues to think about her experiences in Africa and still speaks to one of her daughters. She confirms that one of her children is dead, saying, "Africa, where one of my children remains in the dank red earth," but she does not indicate to which child she refers. She reflects on her time in the Congo with guilt and anguish, examining her day-to-day struggles there and trying to determine what she could have done differently. She remembers that after Mama Tataba left, her days became consumed by the efforts it took to keep her family fed and healthy. Meanwhile, she remembers Nathan's becoming more obsessed with bringing salvation to Kilanga and viewing the resistance he was encountering as a test from God. Orleanna recalls watching helplessly as Nathan became less and less aware of their children and their family's basic needs; his fixation on his mission left her so overwhelmed by the practical details of daily survival that she could not see the larger problems looming ahead.
In their second six months in the Congo, the Price family begins to learn words in Kikongo, the language spoken in Kilanga. As they learn the language, they are also learning about familiar and unfamiliar plants, animals, and insects. Enthralled by her new surroundings, Leah tries to memorize not only the names of things but also the unique sights and sounds. She comments, "Oh, it's a heavenly paradise in the Congo and sometimes I want to live here forever." Despite her reverence for the beauty of the Congo, however, Leah acknowledges that "it's not always paradise here, either. Perhaps we've eaten of the wrong fruits of the Garden, because our family always seems to know too much, and at the same time not enough." The beliefs and skills that the Prices brought with them into Africa never seem adequate in the face of the knowledge needed to survive each day.
