Simile: Sarah and Macon's relationship
Macon is recalling the moment he and his wife Sarah first met: even in the first stages of their relationship as teenagers, the seeds were already planted for their later dynamic of "narrowly missed connections." He has a vision of them "like people who run to meet, holding out their arms, but their aim is wrong." This simile is an apt way to describe how Macon and Sarah have long tried to make their partnership work but how their natural temperaments are misaligned, preventing them from fully living in harmony together.
Metaphor: Memories
When Macon meets Muriel's 7-year-old son Alexander for the first time, he goes off to a daydream in which he remembers Ethan when he was the same age. Macon associates this age with when Ethan first learned to ride a bike, and he describes the memory as "dent[ing] the skin" and "strain[ing] the muscles." With this metaphor, Macon is trying to convey the emotional weight that such recollections carry after the loss of his son.
Simile: Skin of strangers
Macon notes that he has always had an aversion to coming into physical contact with unknown people. When an acquaintance, Sue Carney, pats Macon on the wrist, he thinks about how "outsiders' skin" feels unreal, "as if there were an invisible extra layer between him and them." This discomfort is characteristic for Macon, who fears opening up to people, be they strangers or close relations. He ends up having the sense that there is something in the way, a "layer," standing in between true, authentic communication.
Metaphor: Talking to Muriel
Macon tries to call Muriel Pritchett to inform her that he can't come to dinner as planned. This is because Macon is having second thoughts about engaging in a relationship with her; he doesn't feel he is ready to open up again after the death of Ethan. As he is waiting for her to pick up, he has the sensation of "great, sharp clots of rust...sticking in his throat." This metaphor is meant to illustrate Macon's nervousness in expressing his true feelings, especially when it comes to revealing very personal things about himself.
Simile: Preparing for a trip
Macon prepares for a business trip to England, packing all the necessary things for being in a foreign country. After he packs, he sits on the couch, likening his pause to "a man taking several deep breaths before diving into a river." Despite travel being part of his job, Macon is still a creature of comfort and dislikes going into unknown situations. In this way, his rest is a way of calming himself before having to venture head-on into something unpredictable.
