David Bezmozgis, "A New Gravestone for an Old Grave"

Victor's dad sends him to Latvia to make sure his grandpa gets a better headstone.

(from Zoetrope All-Story, Vol. 9, #2)

There's a moral to this slow, thoughtful story but I can't wrap my head around it. I would discuss it at length if I didn't have a strict-ish no-spoilers policy. But suffice it to say, this story has something resembling a surprise ending with surprise thoughts and depths hardly hinted at before then. But what does it all mean? It much mean something. You can tell it means something, but the meaning is not neat, not over-clever, not typical. This is mostly a sharp story full of mood-setting details and tangents that build gradually toward its themes. And its end, its heavy, blurry end.