chapter 21 - decisions we stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the cabin . his soul had not been at peace before he was born . `` i wanted to spend christmas with your folks , caroline . he had been prepared to see a lot of activity or a little activity , but he had not been prepared for what he was seeing , which was no activity at all . some bones appeared to be from creatures the size of a mouse ; others were almost as large as a whales , and every size in between . 