Seventy-eight-year-old Mary Oliver begins to clean out the garage after her husband's death. As she sorts through piles of junk with her daughter, she discovers a stack of old letters, neatly tied with a ribbon. The letters rekindle memories of her first love, the man she always presumed had died in Europe during World War II. As the story unfolds, Mary discovers that this man she loved so long ago is still alive. The narrative interweaves the present and the past, his story and hers, the saga of their separate families, and the gentle ways God has watched over them through the years.