[arjaybe]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

You're welcome. I see I was on the right track, but should have thought harder.

Spoiler:

The one thing I would suggest is that you suggest to the reader that the forst/land is sacred to Annie's people. When I read that, combined with the "heritage of her people", the first thing I thought was: "Could Annie be an American Native/Indian," or an adopted child? Could her mother be a Native American that discarded her heritage and moved into the city?

Spoiler:

Her mother definitely lost her way, and it's having a terrible effect on her children's lives. I'm hoping that my hints add up to enough for the reader to see the conflict between old ways and new. But, as I told Graham, I don't want to specify any particular culture because it's not mine to use. I feel I must try to tell the story with only the idea.