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47. Invitations
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in With the Fire on High, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Coming of Age and Teen Parenthood
Creativity vs. Professional Norms
Food and Connection
Caregiving, Independence, and Identity
Support, Community, and Mentorship
Summary
Analysis
As Emoni tries to get Babygirl to eat lunch, ’Buela grills her about Malachi. She wants to know where he’s from, if he’s nice, and if he and Emoni are dating. Emoni says they’re barely friends, but ‘Buela says she just thinks Emma is too young for Emoni to bring boys around. This feels like a slap, but Emoni says she’s not sure she’ll even introduce Malachi to Babygirl. She ultimately decides not to.
’Buela acts as the concerned caregiver for both Emoni and Babygirl in this passage. She of course wants Emoni to have friends and do fun things, but she also feels compelled to look out for Babygirl and ensure that Emoni isn’t going to somehow confuse the toddler.
Themes
Later, as Malachi and Emoni are cooking, ’Buela steps into the kitchen and asks Malachi how he’s liking the cooking class. Emoni shoots him a look—she doesn’t want ’Buela knowing she’s skipping—and somehow, he understands. He tells ’Buela that he cooked a lot growing up—his mom worked, and it was his job to feed his little brother. His face falling, he explains that his brother was shot last year, which is why his mom sent him to live with his aunt. Now he doesn’t cook much. Emoni stops herself from reaching out to Malachi, but ’Buela pulls him into a hug. She says she’s glad he and Emoni are friends—but they shouldn’t become more than that. With this, she heads for the TV.
Finally, Malachi reveals what seems like the family secret he didn’t share with Emoni when they got water-ice: that his brother was killed. This turns Malachi into a more complex person in Emoni’s mind, since he’s experienced his fair share of pain, suffering, and experiences that have forced him to grow up before he’s ready. In this sense, he and Emoni have a lot in common, as they’ve both filled caregiver roles for younger family members. It also helps that Malachi’s past makes him more acceptable to ’Buela, which means Emoni might feel less guilty about spending time with him.
Themes
Emoni thanks Malachi for sharing his story and doesn’t press for more information. She explains that ’Buela loves the Eagles, but she’s watching college games tonight. Immediately, Malachi pulls Emoni into a hug. He smells so good. He whispers that they are friends, especially if ’Buela thinks so—though she has awful taste in football teams. Emoni smiles and insists that the Eagles are going to win the Super Bowl this year.
Emoni is beginning to come around to being honest with Malachi about what she’d like from their relationship. Still, she’s not yet willing to explicitly say that she wants friendship—this is why she settles for arguing with Malachi about the Eagles, rather than contradicting his assertion that they’re friends.
Themes
