Chapter 62 “Time” Summary & Analysis – The Midnight Train
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
In Chapter 62, the Ghost of Wilbur (the protagonist) revisits a memory of his honeymoon with Maggie in Venice. They are seated on the terrace of D’Angelo Caffè, sipping wine, listening to John Denver, and chatting about family and trivial topics. The Ghost feels the pain of squandered happiness as he watches his former self take the moment for granted. After finishing their wine, they wander hand‑in‑hand, singing “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” The Ghost recalls that on the day he died, he played the same song on the piano, connecting the memories across time. They head toward a church to see a Titian altarpiece, and Maggie remarks how different Venice feels from everything they’ve known. The chapter underscores the fragility of happiness and the way time can steal moments we fail to treasure.
Key Events
- The Ghost observes his past self and Maggie on a Venetian café terrace, drinking fine wine and enjoying the sunshine.
- They engage in light‑hearted conversation about their wedding, family, and a passerby who resembles Hawkeye from MASH*.
- Maggie leans back to feel the sun and declares, “This is the life.”
- After their wine, they walk hand‑in‑hand; Maggie hums “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” prompting the Ghost to remember playing that song alone on the day he died.
- The Ghost realizes their plan: to visit a church housing a Titian altarpiece of St. John the Almsgiver.
- Cutting through a smaller canal, Maggie comments that Venice feels “different from everything we’ve ever known.”
Character Development
- The Ghost (Wilbur): For the first time, he actively recognizes the happiness he once had and berates himself for not sustaining it. The memory forces him to confront his own blindness to joy. His reflection shows a slow, painful growth in self‑awareness.
- Maggie: Appears fully alive in this memory—engaged, curious, and loving. Her observation about Venice being different hints at her sensitivity to novelty and beauty, qualities that Wilbur failed to appreciate fully at the time.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Time as thief: The chapter’s title “Time” and the Ghost’s lament that happiness “squandered was painful to look at from the future” directly state the theme that time erases or corrupts perfect moments if we do not hold them.
- Music as a thread of time: The Ghost’s recollection of playing “Bridge Over Troubled Water” on the day of his death links the honeymoon memory to his final hours, showing how a single song can stitch disparate moments together across decades.
- Love as a moat: The narrative describes the couple’s love as a “moat against the armies of time,” a powerful metaphor for how deep affection can—temporarily—shield a relationship from the decay of days.
- Honey‑colored light: The description of sunlight “brushed with honey” symbolizes the perfect, golden quality of the memory—a moment that felt eternal but was actually fleeting.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 62 is a turning point in Wilbur’s ghostly journey. It provides the most vivid evidence yet of the happiness he once possessed but lost through inattention and regret. The chapter deepens the novel’s central question: “Why didn’t you stay like this?” and forces both Wilbur and the reader to consider how easily we sabotage our own joy. Musically, the connection between the honeymoon song and Wilbur’s death‑day piano practice creates a strong emotional through‑line that will likely pay off in later chapters. This memory also anchors the story in a specific, tangible happiness that makes Wilbur’s subsequent fate all the more tragic.
Study Questions & Answers
1. Why does the Ghost call the happiness he observes “squandered”?
He sees that his past self took the perfect Venetian afternoon for granted, failing to recognize its value in the moment. Only as a ghost, looking back, does he fully understand what was lost.
2. How does the song “Bridge Over Troubled Water” function in this chapter?
It links two separate times—the honeymoon memory and the day of Wilbur’s death—showing how a piece of music can join disparate moments. The Ghost remembers playing it alone just before he died, which intensifies his regret.
3. What does Maggie’s line “It feels so different, doesn’t it?” reveal about her character?
It shows she is consciously absorbing the novelty of Venice and contrasts with Wilbur’s interior focus. She notices the world around her with freshness, whereas Wilbur (then and now) is prone to introspection that misses the present.