journal 7 natalie young

     We've come across many characters in the book. Some were there more then others but some one who really stood out to me and made me remember them was Esther. She was very important in, Ishmael's, journey to rehabilitation from the war. She was there for him in his time of need, no matter how many times he had rejected her affection and caring gestures. She showed him that nothing was his fault, and that although its okay to be sad, its also okay to be happy again. An example of this would be on page 165 where she says '"none of these things are your fault,". she would always say sternly at the end of every conversation. Even though i had heard that phrase from every staff member - and frankly i had always hated it- I began that day to believe it.' In that quote it shows just how kind hearted she was to Ishmael. And, also how important she was to his recovery. She didn't rush him into anything, visiting her, talking to her, befriending her. She let him do it at his own pace. She also let him accept the fact that nothing was is fault at his own pace.
     I feel that Ishmael had successfully went through rehabilitation. I believe that it is possible. When you're younger, where do you learn the majority of your knowledge from? your parents. The last couple years of his life he had to forget everything he had known prior in order to survive the gruesome war taking place. He had to replace things that he once thought was correct with a whole new life full of drugs, killing, and propaganda. Luckily, for, ishmael, he was still young and willing enough to look past his new ways of survival and try to find the life he had known before.
     Something in the reading I would like to point out that, Beah, does a good job on is description. He makes me feel like I am there sometimes. One example is on page 176 "we walked so many times on the same gravel road that i could close my eyes and still avoid all the big rocks on the road". As well as on page 178 he wrote "she had the most beautiful and open smile and she was laughing a lot". He did a good job giving details of this road and the girls face.
     Someting in the passage that i highlighted and thought had an impact was on page 175, Beah, writes "but the more i talked about my father, the more i missed my mother and little brother too. i didn't grow up with them. i felt as if i missed that chance and would never get it again, and that made me sad." i thought that quote was significant because he had lost what he had ever known to be his family. i could never imagine losing a member of my family, let alone almost all of them. it just really made you stop and think about what he's been through, and how it is going to affect him the rest of his life.