Petra Hoffmann is in her early 50s and pregnant. She is not carrying her own child though, but that of her daughter. Midwife Lena Lorenz has been looking after mother and daughter for a while and the pregnancy has been unproblematic thus far, but shortly before the birth the family starts to break apart.

Follows the life of Stephen Dobyns as he deals with life, women, and his move from journalism to poetry.