Mary Jean
On a cold winter morning Tav wakes his son Samuel at 4 A.M. to help with chores on the family farm. He sternly comments on Sam's work, such as napping while milking, or spilling a little milk, causing Sam to tell his mother how hard it is to please his father. She explains that Tav is just teaching him traits he will need as a man, and although his father loves him very much he finds it hard to express this in words. Sam admits to having the same problem. She says that there are unspoken ways to communicate love, and Sam volunteers, "Like Christmas presents ?" She agrees, but will not tell him how to select a special gift for his father. On Christmas morning Sam goes out to the barn alone (except for the cows, pigs, and chickens) to deliver his special gift in a setting very similar to where the very first Christmas gifts were bestowed.
Catherine Sager
No estado do Missouri, em 1942, a familia Sager decide partir rumo ao Oregon na esperança de encontrar uma vida melhor. Eles embarcam numa carroça e partem em direção ao seu destino, numa viagem que começa agradável, mais vai se tornando cada vez mais dramática, quando a família é atacada por índios e o pai acaba morrendo por envenenamento no sangue. Pouco depois, a mãe da familia sucumbe à pneumonia e o filho mais velho é obrigado a assumir a liderança para poder conduzir seus irmãos ao destino.
