Cari begins her second year of Graduate School and begins The Women's Studies Program. She finds herself decentered and off balance as learns about Feminist Pedagogy and deals with many personal issues. Her journey with Ethan McMillan leads her back to her own father, but their contact soon soon fizzles. The stress of work, school and struggling for a sense of personal power leave her feeling drained. Despite exhaustion, Cari graduates with her Master of Arts in English Literature and her Women's Studies Certificate in May of 2002. Cari journeys home to Ohio to rest and recuperate. She returns to North Carolina unsure of where to go next. It isn't long before she lands her first teaching job and reaches out to her first love.