Where the Lost Wander

Chapter 4 begins in Naomi’s perspective. Naomi confesses to Ma that she has wanted John Lowry ever since she first saw him, and that she let him know. Ma replies that she knows both these things. She has dreamed about John and tells Naomi she’ll have to be patient if she wants to catch him. In her dream, a white bird flies out of the water and sprouts the body of a man and the face of John Lowry; its wings are a feathered headdress. The man walks on water until he reaches the shore, like Jesus.

The point of view then switches to John. As the wagon train moves on toward Fort Kearny, John rides up to Naomi, who is sketching while riding the mule. She shares her notebook with him, asking him not to be afraid of her. Her drawings of landscapes along the trail and faces, including John’s, stun him. He tells her she is very skilled and rides away.

That night, Webb tells John that Ma is having her baby, and soon they hear it crying. William May announces that it is a boy. John tells Naomi that a fifth person in the group has died of cholera and that they must move on the next day.