American Translation: Rice Husband

Lena St. Clair
The chapter begins by saying, "To this day, I believe my mother has the mysterious ability to see things before they happen," (149).  This declarative sentence is how Lena tells us that her mother, Ying-ying, could always foresee evil things that would affect the family. Lena now wonders what her mother will think when she meets her husband in their new home together. Lena then remembers a time when her mother used her gift. When she was a child, Ying-ying told Lena that if she did not eat every grain of her rice, her husband would have "pock-marks" on his face for every grain she did not eat. Lena instantly thought of her 'pock-faced' neighbor, Arnold. Not wanting to marry Arnold, Lena began to wish for his death; she would always leave large amounts of food on her plate, later causing her to be anorexic. Later at the age of 17, Arnold died. Lena initially blamed herself, but then realized that she cannot do that. Lena then talks about her husband, Harold, and how much money they make. The chapter ends with Ying-ying breaking Harold's vase and Ying-ying saying she knew it would happen eventually.
This story shows that sometimes bad things happen, but we cannot blame ourselves.