LaRose

by Louise Erdrich

was like his mouth had a little strainer that only let through pleasant words.

Because Landreaux called him steady, Romeo became steady.

English there was a word for every object. In Ojibwe there was a word for every action. English had more shades of personal emotion, but Ojibwe had more shades of family relationships.

Behind all the flimsy bits of pretend truth there must be a real truth so terrible it would cause a stock market crash.

But what if that truth is some kind of bubble truth? What if behind the truth, there is nothing but a heap of pride or money or just stuff?

What if there is a use-by date on a heap of war stuff?

THERE ARE FIVE LaRoses. First the LaRose who poisoned Mackinnon, went to mission school, married Wolfred, taught her children the shape of the world, and traveled that world as a set of stolen bones. Second, her daughter LaRose, who went to Carlisle. This LaRose got tuberculosis like her own mother, and like the first LaRose fought it off again and again. Lived long enough to become the mother of the third LaRose, who went to Fort Totten and bore the fourth LaRose, who eventually became the mother of Emmaline, the teacher of Romeo and Landreaux.

Huh, said LaRose. So what’s the moral of this story? Moral? Our stories don’t have those! Ignatia puffed her cheeks in annoyance.

They call this an origin story, said Malvern, also annoyed, but precise.