How we cite our quotes: The main text of the story is cited (Chapter.Paragraph). The date headers are not counted as paragraphs. The verses in the chapters with a single passage from the narrator's religious texts are cited (Chapter.Verse.Line#). In chapters with multiple passages, the verses are cited (Chapter.Verse#.Line#). The four section pages with the years and passages are cited (Year.Verse).
Quote #7
They both wanted to run away. They were like deer, frozen in terror, about to bolt. But I'd said the magic word. Two weeks ago, I wouldn't have said it, but I said today to these two starved-looking people: "eat." (23.19)
Sharing food is a time-honored way to build community. Just think of potlucks or other events like that in real life today.
Quote #8
"I say you're going soft," Harry said. "You would have raised hell if we'd tried to take in a beggar woman and her child a few weeks ago."
I nodded. "You're right. I would have. And maybe that's the attitude we should keep. But these two . . . I think they might be worth something—and I don't think they're dangerous. If I'm wrong, we can always dump them." (23.62-63)
This exchange between Harry and Lauren marks one of the moments when our narrator changes. You know, God is change, so of course Lauren is gonna change, right? Earlier, she was saying that they had to be wary of strangers and fend for themselves, but now she's more intent on building an Earthseed community. Still, she maintains a tough attitude: if these newcomers don't work out, Lauren's ready to ditch them.
Quote #9
I left Mora, went over to Allie, and walked with her for a while. [...]
I hugged her then. I put my hands on her shoulders and stopped her half-blind plodding. When she swung around to face me, hostile and hurting, I hugged her. She could have broken free. I was feeling far from strong just then, but after a first angry pulling away, she hung on to me and moaned. I've never heard anyone moan like that. She cried and moaned there at the roadside, and the others stopped and waited for us. No one spoke. Justin began to whimper and Natividad came back to comfort him. The wordless message was the same for both child and woman: In spite of your loss and pain, you aren't alone. You still have people who care about you and want you to be all right. You still have family. (24.98-100)
Family is often a person's first community, so sometimes the concepts of family and community seem interchangeable. The wordless message Lauren conveys to Allie by hugging her is, Hey, you still have family. Perhaps family is a more primal concept than community, in that most people are born into a family and can't choose it, while a community can be a chosen or created place or group of people.