A Bird in the House

Two weeks before her due date, Beth MacLeod is hospitalized. Overhearing her mother’s cries and her father Ewen’s phone conversation with Dr. Cates, Vanessa learns the baby is in a precarious position.

Ewen encounters his mother, Grandmother MacLeod, at the staircase. She criticizes him for not hiring additional help for Beth. Although frustrated, Ewen avoids an argument and welcomes Dr. Cates into their home. Beth reassures Vanessa that Grandmother MacLeod will manage the household despite the early arrival.

Vanessa keeps her fears about the house to herself, haunted by the presence of her deceased Uncle Roderick, the unborn sister, and her grandfather. She mistakes a portrait of the Duke of Wellington for her grandfather.

The family had moved into Grandmother MacLeod’s home during the economic downturn when she could no longer afford a maid. To Vanessa, the ornate Victorian house never feels like home; it is filled with forbidden rooms, including her grandmother’s bedroom, which is adorned with beauty products and photographs of Roderick.

In the living room, valuable items like a Chinese carpet with birds and waterlilies make Beth nervous about Vanessa being too close, which annoys Ewen.

One day, after Vanessa emerges from the attic with a dust smudge, Grandmother MacLeod scolds her for being unclean. She casually mentions that Ewen has updated her about Beth and the baby. Grandmother MacLeod dismisses the seriousness of the situation, claiming Vanessa is too young to understand such matters and warning that such knowledge might make her a “vulgar person.” She coldly informs Vanessa that the baby hasn't arrived yet, and Beth’s condition remains unchanged. Sensing Vanessa’s distress, she attempts to comfort her by sharing her own experience of grief when Roderick died.

Grandmother MacLeod reminisces about her early marriage days in Manawaka, where her husband promised to give her a refined lifestyle similar to what she was accustomed to. She dismisses modern austerity as laziness and contrasts it with Ewen’s explanation that economic hardships prevent such extravagances. She quizzes Vanessa about a book she gave her on the Clans of Scotland, and Vanessa accurately recites the MacInnes motto to her grandmother’s delight: “Pleasure Arises from Work” (47).

Grandmother MacLeod hires a maid without consulting Ewen, sparking a heated argument. Ewen insists on dismissing the maid, citing their financial constraints. Ewen, stressed about Beth possibly needing a C-section, suggests that Aunt Edna could assist.

Edna arrives to find Grandmother MacLeod browsing a catalog. Vanessa accidentally reveals her fears about her mother to Edna just as Grandmother MacLeod descends with an order for two dozen linen handkerchiefs.

Unable to sleep, Vanessa joins her father, Ewen, one evening. In a candid conversation, Ewen discusses Beth’s condition. Ewen shares insights about his father, dispelling the grand image painted by Grandmother MacLeod. He reveals that Grandfather MacLeod aspired to be a classical scholar, a dream unfulfilled, leaving him feeling isolated.

Ewen advises Vanessa to show compassion toward Grandmother MacLeod, who similarly harbored unmet aspirations of being a distinguished lady. Later, Grandmother MacLeod suggests naming the baby Roderick after Ewen’s late brother. Ewen’s attempt to humor the suggestion ends in a somber moment as he reflects on the nickname Roderick Dhu and the sadness it bore, prompting him to apologize.

During Beth’s extended bedrest when she returns home with the baby, Vanessa eavesdrops on a conversation between Beth and Edna. They discuss the tragic fate of Ewen’s brother, Roderick, whose death Ewen partially blames on himself. A childhood accident with Ewen’s air rifle had left Roderick partially blinded, yet he managed to pass the health checks for wartime service. Ewen recalls losing sight of Roderick during the Battle of the Somme and later finding him fatally wounded. He confesses that the formal letter he wrote to his mother about Roderick’s gallant death was a façade, expressing embarrassment that Beth had read this misleading portrayal.

Vanessa ponders death but can’t fully grasp the concept, aware that her feelings are unusual and confusing.