Olive's Ocean

Around her family, Martha pretends to be happy. She tells her mother Jimmy is great, but she thinks her excessive enthusiasm is suspicious. With tiny “explosions” inside of her, she leaves her family and sits on the seawall by herself.

Vince returns from the sailing trip, and Martha and her brother have a contentious exchange. Martha claims Vince knows about the kiss and video. Vince calls Martha a bad mind reader but then admits awareness of the incident. Vince was trying to be the “nice brother,” but now he makes loud kissing noises. Martha declares her hatred for Vince, but Vince acts innocent—the kiss and tape weren’t his idea.

Martha and her family eat at her favorite Cape Cod restaurant, Woods Hole, but the food (shrimp on a roll, coleslaw, and French fries) carries “ominous” symbolism and makes Martha think of Jimmy. Dennis brings up Jimmy, and Vince calls Jimmy a “prick,” which makes Martha almost smile.

When Martha returns from Woods Hole, she sees Tate sitting outside Godbee’s cottage. Tate apologizes for his brother’s behavior and admits he didn’t know what to do. Martha tells Tate that next time, maybe he’ll know the right thing to do. As he leaves, she whispers thank you.

Martha wants to play Parcheesi with Godbee, but Godbee wants to do their daily “sharing session.” Vince wants to play Parcheesi, and so does Lucy. Martha hopes her family’s clamor will push aside her unpleasant thoughts about Jimmy.

In bed, Martha makes notes for her story about Olive. Olive realizes that James is a “stupid” boy with a heart and brain as tiny as a “microbe.” Martha notes that microbes cause diseases.

Martha can’t sleep, so she goes to the kitchen, where Godbee looks like a ghost. Martha wonders if something harmful happened to Godbee, but Godbee explains that the stain on her hands is food coloring. Godbee keeps the empty baby food jars, fills them with water, and then puts food coloring in them so they glow during the daytime. The idea came to her through a dream. In the dream, Godbee is a young girl on the beach. She sees different color waves, and she sinks into the waves before waking up.

As it’s after midnight, Godbee wants Martha to tell her two things: one for yesterday and one for today. Martha doesn’t want to share, and Godbee understands. Martha asks Godbee what she does when she’s sad. Godbee thinks of a person in a worse situation and then tries to do something “nice” for them. Martha plays with her hands and then asks Godbee for an empty baby food jar.

Martha rereads Olive’s journal page and memorizes the part where Olive declares her hope of visiting a “real ocean.” Olive’s wish gives Martha an idea to counter her gloomy mood.

The glass jars filled with food coloring and water shine in the window, and Lucy likes the yellow light the best, pronouncing “yellow” as “lellow.” Lucy gives Martha her morning kiss. Vince shares his thoughts about the yellow light. He thinks it looks like “piss.”

Godbee has tea with her friend Mrs. Maxwell, Alice has to make work calls, and Vince and Dennis go to the Brenton place, so Martha is with Lucy. Martha gets Lucy to go to the beach, and Martha carries an empty baby food jar under her t-shirt.

At the beach, Lucy becomes a princess under an immobilizing spell. Martha goes to the “sea” to get a magic potion or stone to liberate Lucy. Martha wades into the ocean and fills the jar with water. The water in the jar contains “microscopic life,” and the prospect of bringing the jar to Wisconsin and Olive’s mother excites Martha. Martha doesn’t know where Olive’s mother lives, but the parent handbook will have that information.

As Martha puts the jar in her pocket and prepares to return to Lucy, she spots Jimmy. He has his video camera, and he’s holding another girl’s hand. Martha freezes, then steps into the water before it envelopes her.

Martha is a good swimmer and close to the shore, but she panics and feels like she’s drowning. She scratches her cheek and claws out her ponytail until she relaxes and kicks herself to the surface.

The drowning incident makes Martha realize how the world can change and not change in a minute. Lucy remains where she is, and Jimmy is still with the girl, but Martha’s perspective alters: She discovers the world doesn’t revolve around her, and the world will carry on whether she’s alive or dead.

Martha tells Lucy she almost drowned trying to save her. Lucy notices the bleeding scratch on her cheek. Martha says she got it from battling a heinous sea creature. To free Lucy, Martha wrings out her hair on her. Realizing she has sand in her clothes and diaper, Lucy screams, but the “ear-piercing” cry doesn’t ruin Martha’s mood: she did a good deed for Olive, she loves Godbee, Tate is somewhat nice, and she’s alive.