Joyce Carol Oates "The Temple"

In Joyce Carol Oates' short story, "The Temple," the narrator is haunted by "mewing" and scratching sounds that are outside of her home. At first, she suspected the noise to be from a small animal, but started to investigate because the sound disrupted her sleep, from March through May. The sound came from her old garden. Her solution? She dug up where the horrible cries came from. While digging, she tried to comfort whatever was awaiting. For example, she states, " Yes. Yes. I'm here,"and the "mewing" sound stops. Alas, she discovered a skull of a small unknown child. She called it a days work after she found a dozen more bones that completed the unknown body. Once her mission was done, she felt she gave the corpse peace. To honor the skeleton, the narrator wraps the body up in velvet (color of royalty) and pieces the bones together in it's human shape. The temple, where the bones were assembled, is a secret because only the woman knows and promises to "always be there" for the skeleton.
The most important passage starts on the fourth paragraph, page 347, and ends on the second paragraph, page 348. It occurs partly in the middle, almost close to the end. These paragraphs play a big role in the story because now the reader knows what caused all the distress to the narrator. Which was a skeleton of an unknown child. This event adds to the mood of the story because the woman felt a close bond with the skull even though she had no idea who it was and why it was there, "..eyes of an eerie transparency. A kind of knowledge passed between her and these eyes yet she did not know." I believe the theme of the story was she released the trapped skeleton, and gave the dead child attention it deserved decades ago. The fingers are now free from scratching or clawing for escape. "Forever, the finger bones would be at peace." Which also caused the woman some peace herself because she will not hear the "mewing" sounds anymore.
In the end, where she forms the "secret temple" for the body, was the cherry on top. She did her major part by freeing the bones, but then she honors the body, and promises to never leave it's side.