A young girl, trying to adjust to a world without her beloved father, remembering all the stories he told about Caucasian carpet weavers: the shapes, colors, and knots they used and the meaning of each design. Too ill to go to school, she lies in bed and creates her own stories, comforted by her grandmother, whose warmth and understanding make up for her mother's harshness. Gradually the secrets of her family's past come to light.