Goodbye June Ending Explained: What was in June’s Letter?

Netflix’s ‘Goodbye June’ is a family drama film that unfolds over the days leading up to Christmas. The story focuses on the titular June and her family, whose dynamics undergo a drastic shift after they discover that she doesn’t have much time left. They have to set aside their differences while coming to terms with the fact that they are soon going to lose their matriarch, who has been the glue that held the family together. By the end, the family goes through a transformation that inspires hope, while also tugging at the heartstrings of the audience. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Goodbye June Plot Synopsis

One fine morning, a couple of weeks before Christmas, June wakes up to make tea for herself. Shortly after putting on the kettle, she falls unconscious and is found by her son, Connor, who wakes up after hearing the kettle’s whistle. June’s husband, Bernie, who’d just opened the tap in the bathroom, also rushes towards the kitchen. The ambulance is called, June is taken to the hospital, and as she goes into emergency surgery, Connor calls his sisters to let them know that their mom is in the hospital again. His first call goes to the middle sister, Julia, who is on her way to drop her two children off at school, leaving her with no option but to take her third and youngest child with her to the hospital.

Connor’s second call goes to the youngest sister, Molly, who is at home with her own brood of children. Since her husband has already left for work and all children, but one, are off to school, she, too, carries her youngest to the hospital. The sisters arrive at the same time, but it’s clear that there are unresolved issues between them, especially from Molly’s end. Even as Julia tries to say hi to her, she doesn’t respond. The third call goes to the eldest sister, Helen, who is in Germany, teaching a holistic dance therapy class. She misses the first call, so later, Julia calls her to update her on the situation, calling her to immediately fly home.

The doctors clarify that June’s cancer has returned, and it has already spread to significant parts of her body. She has been in and out of hospitals for three years now, and while she fought well, there is nothing that can be done, apart from making things as comfortable for her as possible. The revelation shatters the children, each of whom processes it in their own way. Bernie, on the other hand, goes into complete denial, refusing to acknowledge what’s right in front of him. The tension between Molly and Julia deepens to the point that Molly creates a schedule for them to visit their mother so that their timings don’t clash. Julia doesn’t like it, but is forced to go along with it. In the midst of all this, the family, particularly June and Connor, forms a connection with her nurse, Angel.

Does June Die? Why Does the Family Celebrate an Early Christmas?

When the doctors tell the family that the clock is ticking for June, Connor asks how many months she has left. The doctors reveal that she barely has a couple of weeks, let alone a month, and they don’t know if she’ll even live to see the upcoming Christmas. As the family gathers around June, they have already accepted that she is going to pass soon, and yet, they hope that she will get to celebrate one last Christmas with them. The grief of losing their mother has already gripped their hearts, and even as she counts her breath, June continues her effort to bring the family closer together. Seeing that Molly and Julia are still fighting over baseless things, she forces them to have a long-overdue conversation, which finally bridges the gap between them.

Meanwhile, Bernie tries to live in denial, but is forced to confront the reality of losing his wife after she breaks her favorite vase by mistake and is chided by Connor for getting a bit more serious about the situation. Connor’s anger is justified in the moment, but later, he feels guilty after realising that denial was his father’s way of processing the fact that his wife is going to die soon. In the end, however, he has to accept that these are the last moments that he will have with June, and he must make the most of them. That night, he sings a song for her, which makes her happy. At the same time, she also asks him to sing the same song for her when she dies. This makes Bernie realise that she will not survive for long. She is hanging on by a thread, which might snap sooner than they’d like it to.

With Christmas still about a week away, he decides that the timeline must change. June will not live another week, so Christmas must come early. He convinces his family to celebrate Christmas the very next morning, and they all agree to it. They enthusiastically put everything together, especially the children, who perform the play they’d been preparing for school. They use a secluded part of the hospital to put up the play, and when everything is ready, they bring June there to celebrate Christmas with her. While the play is still being performed, June breathes her last, passing away with a sense of peace, knowing that she is surrounded by the ones she loves, and that they will all be fine because they have each other.

What was in June’s Letter?

While June’s children try to make the most of their time with her, she also makes her final days count. She had always tried to keep the family together, no matter what, and this is the final thought that she has as she feels the end of her days on the horizon. The one she is least concerned about is Julia, who has always been the responsible one and has taken care of the entire family. The only thing that is troubling in her life is her frayed relationship with Molly. June doesn’t want the sisters to drift away after her death, so, she collaborates with Nurse Angel to bring them together in the same room. Under the guise of writing a letter for Helen and her unborn baby, she forces Molly and Julia to talk over their differences, and her plan works.

This leaves only Helen about whom June is concerned the most. Helen had left for Germany with her husband and, for the most part, had done well for herself. Her hippie lifestyle may have been a cause for concern, but it was the fact that she seemed far removed from her family that concerned June the most. And then, when Helen returns home to visit June, she reveals she is pregnant. This is a particular cause of heartbreak for both June and Helen, because they both know that the baby’s grandma will not be around to welcome them into the world. In addition to this, June also realizes that Helen and her husband are no longer together. She wishes to be around for her daughter, but the cancer has made that impossible, so she leaves a letter for the baby.

At first, June uses the letter to trap Molly and Julia into a conversation, but it is when they actually leave the room that she writes the letter for the baby of her eldest daughter. In the letter, she leaves her love behind, saying all the things that she wishes she could have said to her grandchild in person, all the love that she could have showered upon them if she weren’t taken so soon. Still, in her absence, she knows that the baby will be taken care of because they will have a great mother in Helen, caring aunts in Molly and Julia, a loving uncle in Connor, and a delightful grandfather in Bernie. Her letter, in a way, is her final word, not just for her grandchild, but also for her entire family. It is a way to show them that she will always be around in the form of love that they share with each other as a family.

Do Connor and Nurse Angel End Up Together?

The news of June’s impending death is hard on everyone, but the one who is affected by it the most is Connor. In his late 30s, he’d resigned himself to a life at home, dedicated to caring for his ailing mother. While his sisters still had their lives, he stayed at home, and for a while, his whole life revolved around tending to June. So, when he is told that his mother is going to die, he takes the hardest hit and struggles to come to terms with the giant hole that is going to be in his life after June is gone. The news stirs up all kinds of emotions within the family, and his sisters try to process things in their own way, but they also have their families, which offer some welcome, albeit chaotic, distraction from the situation. Connor, unfortunately, does not have that option.

As he emotionally breaks down during this difficult time, Nurse Angel senses his struggle and becomes an unexpected source of comfort. For Angel, June starts as yet another patient that he does his best to take care of. However, the way her family comes together to be with her and see her off melts his heart, allowing him to connect with them on a deeper level. The family even invites him to the Christmas show they put up for June, so he is also around when she passes.  Because Connor is around the most, they see each other more than anyone else. Moreover, Angel has also been through a similar grief in his life, so he understands what Connor is going through and helps him through the grief.

Slowly, this connection evolves into something more, which is confirmed in the final scene, which takes place one year after June’s passing. The entire family is gathered for Christmas, and it includes Angel, who is with Connor. It seems that after June’s passing, they stayed in touch and soon started seeing each other. Being with Angel shows that Connor has moved on from the house and pulled himself out of the pause that he seemed to have put on his life when June was diagonsed. In the end, he is happy and content, and he knows that June would have been delighted to know that he has found love and happiness, and that he has someone to take care of him, just like he takes care of other people.

Read More: Is Goodbye June Based on a True Story?