The Same River Twice: Part one

The first few chapters of The Same River Twice by, Chris Offutt, is kind of like two stories being told at once.  I assume that this is the purpose of the book, to have two stories that gradually merge into one.  The first story that we learn about is Chris when he is older and trying to marry the love of his life, Rita.  He asks her to marry him twice before she finally says yes the third time he asks.  He is frustrated by her refusals and says, “Being refused twice led me to a careful strategy, guaranteed to catch her when she was weak” (Offutt 12).  He coerced this woman into marrying her but it did seem like it was what she wanted as well.  This part of the story continues on through their marriage into the discussions of having children.  Chris at first does not want children at all.  He believes that he will not be a good father and most importantly does not want Rita to love the child more than him.  Eventually he realizes that he will either have to live a life without Rita or one with her and a baby.  They decide to start trying to get pregnant and after a long while they finally conceive.  The rest of the chapter, and the next one that continues this story, is about his fears of raising a child.  He is afraid that he will mess up the child or that it will be born a freak.

The other story that the author is writing about is when Chris was younger and left Kentucky.  He went to New York to become and actor and encounters some very interesting people.  He meets a woman named Jahi, and she teaches him about the human body and human sexuality.  She opens his eyes to the city and all the different kinds of people you can encounter.  The turning point in his relationship with Jahi is when they go horse-back riding.  He is very skilled at this and is galloping with his horse, but as he does this he see’s “[a] young rider slid from the saddle.  His head slammed against a streetlight, spinning his body in a pinwheel, slinging blood that spattered the street” (Offutt 37).  After this he never speaks to Jahi again.  He gets in an accident playing football and returns home to Kentucky for a while.  When he returns to the city he meets the twins, Luis and Javier.  The twins get into all sorts of mischief and always have Chris be the look out.  At the end of the chapter the twins try to get Chris to marry their cousin, Maria.  Chris does not want to marry Maria and ends the chapter by leaving town.

Definitions:

Undulating – to move with a sinuous or wavelike motion; display a smooth rising-and-falling or side-to-side alternation of movement

Derisively – characterized by or expressing derision; contemptuous; mocking