Although the main action in “Walker Brothers Cowboy” takes place in a single afternoon, it is nonetheless accurately classified as a coming-of-age story because it features a young protagonist whose new and unexpected insights into her father cause her to experience moments of disillusionment that implicitly contribute to her loss of innocence. This growth is triggered by the girl’s half-articulated observations of her father on this singular afternoon, and the events highlight the disparities between the narrator’s limited understanding of the world and the unspoken realities of the adult landscape that surrounds her. Throughout the story, the narrator becomes more comfortable with the idea of the past as something that one cannot fully know, and she begins to notice the complex ways in which the past influences the present. With this profound inner transformation, the narrator experiences The Disillusionment of Fading Childhood as she comes to see her father in a more nuanced light. While her initial view of Ben Jordan portrays him simply as a kind and tranquil figure, the story’s conclusion reflects her broadened perspective on him, which has expanded to acknowledge the untold stories of his life before he became a father.