The flexibility of children to see what they want to see provides families and communities with hope when lives are irreversibly changed through struggles like war.

In the text, the juxtaposition of Larry’s innocence and his rage highlights the struggles his father and mother went through without him being aware of it. The way he describes his struggles with his father is through the language of war. He discusses a “series of skirmishes against one another” and dramatically states that “from that morning out my life was a hell” (19). However, this battle is for his mother’s attention. The irony of his language brings attention to how idyllic and sweet his family life can be. The biggest problem in Larry’s life is this competition, and when he finally breaks and falls into a rage against his father, “there stood Mother in her nightdress, looking as if her heart was broken between us” (19). This heartbroken quality wasn’t noticed when Larry and his mother would pray for his father’s return. It only comes to light when the family dynamic breaks down.

It is Larry who fights for daily activities like walking, nature, and rising early.