[ he was not ignored… he just wasn't heard… ]

We can still have plants. [ … ] Instead of chasing the uninhabitable, what if we looked for somewhere we'd actually want to stay?

[ he still has his lakeside cabin dreams—living off the land, tending a garden, keeping chickens… and now, apparently, an entire capybara. ]

We could build up our names as a travelling apothecary and his assistant, set up shop every so often at nearby settlements. It'll be a little like a fairytale.

[ they just ignore one even smaller thing and it's peachy!! perfectly peachy!! ]