December is coming around the corner. Jonas is trying to find the right word to describe his feelings. He thinks he is frightened, and then decides that frightened is the wrong word to describe his feelings. Frightened is when an unidentified aircraft flies over his community and orders everyone to keep their bikes aside and go into the nearest building.
He is very wary about his language, unlike his best friend, Asher. Asher always mixes up words and phrases. Jonas remembers the time when Asher was late for class and had to apologize for inconveniencing his class and the instructor. He used the word “ distraught” instead of “ distracted”. Jonas finally finds the right word to describe his feelings, “ apprehensive”. At the dining table, Jonas’s family discusses their feelings.
Lily is mad because a male Seven from another community was not following the rules. Father and mother calm her by telling her that he might not have known the rules. Father feels concerned because one newborn child is not growing normally. He also feels guilty because he took a peek at the Naming List before the ceremony because he thought that calling the newborn child would enhance his nurturing. Mother had a repeat offender come to the Department of Justice.
She thought that she gave him a punishment that would make him realize what he had done, and not repeat the same offence. It was Jonas’s turn to talk about his feelings. He told his family that he felt apprehensive about the upcoming ceremony.