Christ in Concrete

The year 1929 comes and the building boom ceases with the stock market collapse and the arrival of the Great Depression. Men are out of work. The hunger—and the fear of hunger—described in earlier chapters returns. The men do not laugh or smile as they used to do. Paul and Annunziata pay another visit to the Cripple. Paul asks her to speak with Geremio about their future. The Cripple tells them that anything in their minds is because Geremio and God planted it there. She emphasizes that Geremio and God have figured things out for the family, so it will be okay. She says that Geremio wants his family to suffer no longer, so they will take a trip to some dairy farms and settle into a new life. She says that one night, Geremio will visit the family while they are seated at the table. Then Geremio will go to the angels in heaven because his family is happy, and Annunziata will rejoin him when she is old and her hair is white.

Nazone seeks Paul’s help in finding work. Nazone desires to return to Italy to be with his