How is the butcher David meets in St. Vincent important to the plot in the novel, About Grace?

The butcher is a minor, but important, character in the novel. David befriends the butcher in St. Vincent, telling the butcher about his dreams. The butcher reveals that David does not actually know if Grace is dead or alive. This, in conjunction with saving Naaliyah after dreaming of her death, means that David’s dreams are not fate. They are choices and potential futures which can be changed. It is the conversation about dreams with the butcher that helps David decide to return to America to find Sandy and Grace.