The Guncle

The next day, Patrick and Clara discuss parenting and their own mother. When Clara suggests, “You should have her come out” (153), Patrick refuses. In turn, he asks Clara why she came, but she avoids the question.

Since the tree is up, they decide to celebrate an early Christmas, but when Clara suggests sharing what they’re grateful for, Patrick gets angry: “They just lost their mother […] We’ve been getting comfortable in our unhappiness, with the fact that life is often unpleasant, and we don’t need to pretend otherwise” (155). Still, as Clara scolds Patrick for his parenting transgressions, he acknowledges that her experience comes in handy sometimes.

When Grant asks if Clara is mad at them, Patrick explains that siblings can get annoyed but still love each other. He urges Maisie and Grant to not take their relationship for granted, implying that he sometimes does this with Greg and Clara. Later, Patrick explains that he leases his property from the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. Clara, a believer in social justice causes, wants to know how much her rich, white brother pays, but he declines to answer. When they exchange gifts, Patrick gives each of the kids a framed photograph of Sara from her college days.

After the kids go to bed, Patrick and Clara trade passive aggressive criticisms. Patrick feels Clara ignores him, but she feels invisible in the shadow of his celebrity. She announces she’s taking the kids back to Connecticut with her and accuses him of posting a video of them on YouTube, partying late into the night, and drinking irresponsibly. Patrick refuses to let the kids go. As they fight, old resentments come out: Clara resents Patrick loving Sara as the sister he wishes he had. Patrick realizes that Clara has a point and doesn’t respond, which dials down the heat of the argument.

In the new calm, Clara apologizes for a remark she made after Joe’s death—“It’s not like you were married” (170)—and Patrick concedes that he is a bit narcissistic but calls it a necessary survival technique for gay men. When he discovers she’s already bought three plane tickets, however, Patrick is outraged that Clara planned to take the children back regardless of his feelings. He storms out.

After Clara leaves early the next morning, Patrick feels guilty for fighting with his sister after lecturing Maisie and Grant on the importance of sibling relationships. Patrick takes them on a tram ride to the summit of a nearby mountain, avoiding Maisie’s questions about why Clara left early. At the top, they hike along the mountain ridge, observing the city below and communing with nature. Maisie confesses she heard Patrick and Clara fighting; Grant mentions that he used to hear Sara and Greg fighting, too. That happens with people who love each other, Patrick tells them.

Patrick recalls a few huge arguments with Sara. Once, at the Grand Canyon, a squabble about Patrick leaving Sara for LA turned into a personal, visceral fight about Sara dating Greg: “It’s like you’re trying to have me, my worldview, my upbringing, my DNA, but in a different…sack” (181). Sara accused him of pushing her away to make their separation less painful. Just then, the fog obscuring their view of the canyon lifted, and they witnessed such a magnificent sight that their fight seemed petty and profoundly relevant.

Over lunch, Patrick realizes that Maisie is the one who posted the video of them on YouTube. When Patrick checks out Emory’s show, Maisie and Grant ask about Patrick’s sexuality. He recalls his first sexual attraction—a cool kid in his first-grade class that he idolized. In his younger days, being gay conferred a certain outsider status, before legalized marriage and adoption made gay culture part of the mainstream.

One morning, Patrick is served court papers—Clara is suing for custody of the children, claiming Patrick’s home is an unfit environment. He immediately leaves a message for Greg at the treatment facility: “I’m handling it” (193).

That afternoon, Patrick stakes out the Palm Springs Hyatt Regency, having deduced that Clara is staying there. While waiting in the lobby, he watches the YouTube videos Maisie has posted, including one of them on the mountain. He is astonished by the number of views—a quarter of a million. While he considers posting a third, Clara walks in. Despite her reservations about talking to Patrick without her attorney, in a poolside cabana, Clara reveals that she and her husband, Darren, are getting a divorce and she fears losing custody of her stepchildren. She also worries that Maisie and Grant are having too much fun instead of dealing with their loss.

Patrick calls Clara’s threat of legal action a bluff, but when she doesn’t budge, he threatens to countersue with “an army of attorneys [who will] bury you so deep in a legal avalanche, those kids will be in college before you dig yourself out” (202). She finally relents. Grateful for the fight to be over, Patrick invites her to stay for a few days, but she needs to go home.