Alice finds a handwritten letter from Charlie Florek listing the accessibility modifications he completed for Nan: removing rugs, rearranging furniture, adding bathroom grab bars and anti-slip strips, installing a raised toilet seat and night-lights, and reorganizing the kitchen. He notes the boat is in and fueled, leaves homemade pierogi, and says John covered costs. On the back, he details upcoming cottage maintenance for John (steps, railing, brush cutting, dock re-staining) and adds a final assurance that he promised John he would take care of Alice and Nan.

Alice reacts with skepticism at Charlie’s confidence while Nan is grateful, calling him a “guardian angel.” That evening, they eat the pierogi, which Alice finds excellent. In the kitchen, Nan points out she sewed the old curtains and reminisces about family visits, including a matchbook-hiding game between Grandpa and John, whose jar of found matchbooks Nan calls “memories.”

Alice reassures Nan she will make the summer enjoyable and lists the supports she arranged: choir, euchre, hair appointments, physiotherapist, and newspaper delivery. Nan urges Alice to also do something for herself, pushing her beyond mere editing work. Alice tentatively outlines plans to read, swim, and take photos, admitting the unstructured time feels daunting.

They decide on a shared creative project: sewing to refresh the cottage. Remembering past sewing collaborations, they agree to make new kitchen curtains and potentially pillowcases and a tablecloth. Nan proposes acquiring a sewing machine and fabric, suggesting the local Stedmans as a starting point. Alice agrees, unconcerned about John’s opinion.

Tired from the day, Nan goes to bed after their old refrain, “Good things happen at the lake.” In the heat, Alice changes into a swimsuit and heads to the deck and dock, taking in the expansive view of the bay and recalling her teenage summer spent exploring and photographing nature after Nan encouraged her to “go explore.”

Swimming at sunset, Alice reflects on the last six months: a breakup with Trevor, his quick engagement to someone else, and Alice’s reactive overwork that brought professional busyness without fulfillment. She dries off in a Muskoka chair, observes neighboring cottages—including an A-frame and a large white house—and watches two younger siblings swim and play on a floating raft, their joy stirring memories of the teens she once photographed.

As evening quiet returns, a loud motor breaks the calm. A yellow boat rounds the bay and heads directly toward Alice, jolting her with a powerful sense of past and present colliding.