Forgiveness, the Labyrinth, the Great Perhaps, and the Sum of All Our Parts: A Summary

The Colonel, Takumi, and Pudge are moving on to the next stage of grieving. They are becoming more used to the fact that Alaska, unfortunately, has left them. It is less of a shock, and they are coming to terms with the loss, the impact she had on them, and what she has left them with together as a whole. Takumi leaves a note for Pudge confessing that he saw her the night she died as well. He apologizes for letting her go. He didn't know she would really leave. There is some blame for Takumi as well, and they can all share it. Pudge writes his final, answering Alaska's question. The only way out of the Labyrinth is forgiveness. Alaska was so afraid of her mistake of being inactive at the right time, that she became active at all the wrong times, creating an impulsive eccentric Alaska. Pudge explains that he sees this, and for Alaska maybe that's all she could do. But Pudge is going to try to take a different route and continue to survive and search for a Great Perhaps. He explains that he will forget her slowly. But she will forgive him, and he will forgive her for only thinking of herself. But despite that, she loves them all. Because she is not just a body. She is the girl that taught them all something, especially Pudge. Who she taught how to be brave, sometimes. She is her green eyes and curves. She may be recycled through the Earth for all to benefit from. But she couldn't have been because of her mind, experiences, and relationships. "There is a part of her greater than the sum of her knowable parts." The parts no one could see, but things she said to them that stay with her loved-ones forever. Words, experiences, and wisdom, all passed down from person to person. He isn't sure if he believes in an afterlife. Teenagers are energy and energy cannot be created nor destroyed, it changes shape but never leaves. Pudge believes there's another 'Somewhere" out there, he's not sure what it is, but he feels it must be beautiful. Such a place, where the greater parts of people go, that cannot be destroyed. The parts of people that continue to move throughout the world in different forms of words, thoughts, and wisdom.They thrive, in the hearts of those filled with life. They are an energy, within them.

Autumn