Charlotte is a kindergartener. Every day, she walks to school with her sister. They pass a man who is blind sitting outside the A&P. He sits playing the accordion, accompanied by his seeing-eye dog. As they pass the man every day, Charlotte never talks to him herself—she can’t help but be a little afraid of the man’s cloudy eyes and his dog’s gray muzzle. Every day, Charlotte drops a dollar into the man’s accordion case. He hears the swoosh and responds, “God bless America” (182). As Charlotte approaches the fifth grade, she doesn’t see him anymore, since Beecher Prep is closer to her house. One day, when Charlotte passes the A&P, she realizes that the blind old man is gone.

Charlotte claims that she isn’t dramatic, even though people often say that she is. The disappearance of the old man playing the accordion distresses Charlotte. She begins interviewing everyone trying to find where he went but has no success. Her mother suggests she “channel” her energy into a coat drive. Charlotte tries to point out that the old man already has an orange Canada Goose parka. Her mom claims that this is proof that he isn’t unhoused. Back at school, Mr.