Evangeline's father compares the rings of a tree trunk to the important events in life. Mathinna's mother makes a similar comparison to the shells on the necklace. Are the analogies apt? What "rings" exist in your life?

Evangeline's father compares the rings seen within a tree trunk to the important people and events in one's life. Mathinna's mother tells her that the shells on the necklace she gives her are also symbolic of those in her life. Are the analogies apt, do you think? What "rings" exist in your life?

A theme of The Exiles is the interconnectedness of life. I loved that Mathinna's mother tied the string binding the shells to the necklace as an example of how one is linked and connected to another person. The rings of the tree trunk exemplify how our lives are connected to our ancestral past and how our lives become part of the ever-growing future. The rings in my tree of life are built upon the generations of my family before me and for generations that will follow. I wonder if when looking at the rings of my tree trunk, if the stresses of the current year of COVID will be reflected in either a weakening or strengthening the tree of life.
The Exiles certainly reveals the importance of folks and events in the lives of the characters in the story, especially the strong female characters.

I thought the analogies were appropriate in each case. Evangeline's father used the growth rings of a tree to represent significant incidents or people in one's life, while the shells in the necklace made by Mathinna's mother represented important people in her daughter's life.
For me the growth rings represent major changes, each adding a new path or direction, in the eighty-one years of my life.

These were great analogies I had never thought of and they added depth to the story. It would be very interesting to see the rings of my life. I agree with gracew, it would be interesting to see if 2020's rings stand out. If I had a shell necklace that represented the people that I consider friends in my life now it would have many shells, (I'm 71) but it would also be interesting to see another shell necklace that represents the people that were significant in my life at some time but are no longer.

Yes, both good analogies. I have found myself using the rings of a tree lately.