It's winter, and a little girl falls into the cold water by the beach. She throws a bottle into the water, but it's too light, and the waves keep it in the water for a long time. She's not able to get out of the water alive, and since then, she's been reluctant to tell anyone about what happened. The girl's mom dies, so the girl is left alone with her father. The narrator tells us that the girl doesn't understand her father's motives, and that he's trying to force her to forgive her family. He's being "ideal" by forcing her to "understand her father" and "forgive that family" .