Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World

When Dante leaves for Christmas, Gina and Susie gift Ari a silver cross on a silver chain. In a note, they tell him that they don’t want him to think that God hates him, because they do not believe that he does. The necklace will serve as a reminder that he is not alone. When Ari puts the necklace on, he knows that he will never take it off.

Ari writes a journal entry and decides, “I don’t feel that loneliness when I’m alone anymore” (238). He is getting more and more comfortable with the person he is becoming. Looking ahead to the new year, Ari feels hopeful that things will get better, for himself and for the world.

Ari starts a journal entry before realizing he has nothing to say. Lilly walks into the kitchen and asks Ari if he is nervous about seeing Bernardo; he admits that he is feeling anxious. Lilly tells Ari she hopes he finds what he is looking for.

Ari wakes to his mother on his bed, saying goodbye before she leaves to Tuscan to visit Ari’s sisters.

Later in the shower, Ari thinks about Bernardo. He wonders if Bernardo ever loved him.

In the kitchen, Jaime tells Ari that he got a call from the Huntsville prison informing him that Ari will be allowed to speak to Bernardo for one hour the following day. Ari spends the rest of the day wondering what he will say to Bernardo, who he has not seen in 11 years.

On the drive to the prison, Ari and his father speak about a lot of things. Jaime tells Ari the story of a student of Lilly’s letting out a bunch of lizards in her classroom many years ago. Instead of freaking out and telling the principal, Lilly asked the kids to help her gather the lizards and set them free in the desert. Her students were so in awe of her that her worst class became her best class that day.

Jaime says that the only thing a person leaves on earth when they die is their name. Ari wants his father to live forever.

Ari and Jaime check into a hotel in Austin for the night. Jaime tells Ari that in 1856, there was a county in Texas where it was illegal to be Mexican.

Lying in bed that night, Ari thinks about Bernardo. When Jaime tells Ari that he is a brave kid, Ari tells his father “I like you, Dad” (250).

At the prison, Ari is led by a guard to the area where he will be able to speak to Bernardo via telephone. When Ari sees his brother, they stare at each other for a moment without saying anything. From the first moments of their interaction Bernardo is rude and mean-spirited. When they have some back and forth, Bernardo is impressed with Ari’s quickness and lets his guard down. The conversation turns tense again when Bernardo insults Lilly. When Ari brings up the transgender woman Bernardo brutally murdered, Bernardo claims that she deserves to die, though he misgenders her in the process. Sensing that he will likely never see this person again, Ari tells Bernardo that he is gay. Bernardo laughs and refers to Ari as an anti-gay slur. With that, Ari decides to leave. When he signs out of the building, he feels a satisfying sense of closure knowing that his brother will no longer haunt his dreams.

On the way home from visiting Bernardo, Ari thanks his father for everything. When an old Beatles song comes on, they sing along together.

After eating at a diner, Ari and Jaime find a campground where they can spend the night. They lie under the stars and drink bourbon together. Ari feels grateful to finally feel close to his dad after having been strangers for so many years.

Jaime tells the story of how he and Lilly got together in college. He had a crush on her for a long time and used to follow her around campus. When day she turned around and asked him if he was ever going to talk to her, or if he was just going to stalk her for the rest of time. One day a girl walked up to Jaime and gave him Lilly’s number and told him to call her. That woman was Carmela Ortiz, the nurse at Ari’s school. Jaime says that if Lilly and Carmela had not given him that shove, he probably would not have married the love of his life, Lilly.

Jaime tells Ari the story of the Jewish boy who died in his arms in Vietnam. The boy asked Jaime to tell his parents he would see them next year in Jerusalem. After the war ended, Jaime went to the boy’s parents and did just as he asked.

Jaime tells Ari that war is hell, and that cowards start wars.

Ari is happy to know how his parents fell in love, and that his mother had found a way to move a quiet man standing still into action.

As they are getting into El Paso, Ari asks his father what advice he has for him. Jaime tells him he will need some time to think about it.

At home, Ari tells his mother that by visiting Bernardo, he found a piece of himself that was missing.

For dinner, Ari’s parents take him out for pizza with his friends. Jaime gets a kick out of watching the kids talk with one another.

After dinner, Dante and Ari spend some time talking on Dante’s front porch. They agree that the upcoming year is going to be the best of their lives.

On the second to last day of the year, Ari is feeling happy. Lilly leaves for the grocery store while Jaime sleeps in late.

Ari is in the kitchen with his journal when Jaime walks in, clutching his chest. Jaime falls to the ground, struggling to breathe. Ari holds his father as he whispers his son’s name, and then his wife’s. Jaime dies in Ari’s arms.

Ari cannot remember his mother coming into the house and finding him holding his dead father. He cannot remember how she took Jaime in her arms and called him the love of her life.

What Ari does remember is waking up to a doctor checking his vitals. The doctor was a childhood friend of Bernardo’s and recalls how Jaime used to take them fishing when they were kids. Amazingly, the doctor’s name is also Jaime. Ari feels grateful to have met him.

When Jaime leaves the room, Dante appears. He gets onto the bed with Ari and holds him as they cry together.

Back at Ari’s house, Lilly and the Quintanas sit together at the kitchen table. Lilly says Jaime was the only man she ever loved, and that she was the only woman he ever wanted to love.

When Sam goes outside to rock Sophocles to sleep, Ari joins him. Ari is shocked when Sam breaks down into sobs, deeply sad about the loss of his friend.

When Ari wakes up the next morning, he feels strange. He notes that it is odd to wake up to such sadness in the house. He is sad to know that he will never hear his father’s voice again.

When he joins his mother in the kitchen for coffee, Lilly asks Ari to write his father’s obituary and give the eulogy at his funeral. To help with the writing, Lilly gives Ari one of Jaime’s journals. One entry describes the night he and Ari drove back from visiting Bernardo, the night when Ari asked his father for advice. In the journal, Jaime regards his son highly and decides the advice he wants to give him is to “never do anything to prove to anyone else, or even to prove to yourself, that you’re a man” (271).

The next day when Ari is writing, Lilly gets a visit from Mrs. Alvidrez. She has come to pay her respects, an apple pie in hand. Lilly apologizes for the fight they had months ago and tells the woman she is welcome in her home anytime. Ari respects his mother for forgiving Mrs. Alvidrez.

Ari’s house is full of people who have come to pay their respects. In the wake of his father’s passing, Ari spends a lot of time thinking about death—how people die, when they die, and how their deaths affect others.

On New Year’s Eve, Ari and Lilly get a visit from Cassandra and her mother. They bring food and offer their deepest condolences to Lilly and Ari. Soon the rest of Ari’s friends arrive; when they see him, they all take turns giving him long hugs. Ari is overwhelmed by their support and cannot help but cry. He appreciates that they do not try to make him feel better—simply being there for him is enough.

In the living room, Cassandra notices Tito, Ari’s childhood bear who used to bring him comfort when he was little. Each of Ari’s friends tell him that they will be his Tito now. Ari realizes then that these people will be his friends for life.

On New Year’s Day, 1989, Ari goes to Mass with his mother, his sisters and their families. At church, he feels numb, wanting “to be anywhere but here” (278).

Ari writes a journal entry. He writes about how his father is dead and the shock of that reality. He writes that he is deeply sad and in a great deal of pain.

Dante comes over in the afternoon and can tell Ari has been crying. They go to Ari’s room and Ari falls asleep in Dante’s arms.

Ari attaches his father’s dog tags to the chain he got from Gina and Susie.

At the funeral, Ari feels strange walking behind his father’s casket.

When it is time, Ari gives a powerful eulogy for his father. He speaks about his father’s experience in the war, and how the brutality of the violence he witnessed scarred him for life. Ari remembers his father as a deeply caring and considerate man, someone who wanted the best for everyone. Ari tells mourners that he is proud to be his father’s son.

After the service, Ari is overwhelmed by grief. He whispers to his father that he will see him in Jerusalem next year before falling to his knees. Suddenly, Ari is surrounded by Dante and his friends; they hold Ari up and sing “Bridge Over Troubled Water” (286).

When Ari gets home, he changes into comfortable clothes. He tries to be around his family but cannot connect with them. Lilly tells him to get some rest.

When Ari wakes up, it is almost noon. He finds his mother and sisters in the kitchen drinking coffee. His sisters tell him that they are proud of him for giving their father’s eulogy. Though she is sad, Lilly says she is happy to have her children, even Bernardo, who lives in her heart.

Back in his room, Ari reads another one of his father’s journals, this one depicting his plans to ask Lilly for her hand in marriage. Lilly remembers the day clearly.