The land is very important to Frank, and it is where he feels most at home. What is also the importance or meaning of the land in Medicine Walk?
Medicine Walk opens and closes with images of the land. At the beginning of the novel Frank rides out on the land to go see his father. At the novel's close, Frank waves goodbye to his ancestors on the land. The land bookends the novel in terms of setting, but it also serves as a site of healing for many of the novel's characters. Frank comes to terms with his history through the land, where he is able to envision a past he has never known.
The land is where Frank bears witness to Eldon's stories and past, and so there exists a relaying of place-based knowledge and storytelling on the land. Eldon returned to Parson's Gap after the Korean War because it was where he last left his mother, and although Eldon does not find her there, place and land remain generationally tied through Eldon's return. Wagamese devotes ample imagery and descriptive language to the land, because the land is immensely important to Frank. The land is where Frank feels most at home.
