TOW #8- IRB second half

    For a teenager living in 21st century America, daily hardships may include homework, busy schedules, or parental misunderstandings.  For the three lost boys of Sudan, who are also the authors of They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, these struggles would be looked at as luxuries.  In their collaborative novel composed of their three separate journeys to freedom, Benson Deng, Alepho Deng, and Benjamin Ajak, display perseverance during the Sudanese Civil War with a series of descriptive anecdotes and a hopeful mood that is created throughout the book.  By utilizing these devices, the boys are able to show their audience what a daily hardship looks like to the children of Sudan.
     They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky consists of alternating descriptive anecdotes from the time between the boys' separation and their reunion.  Although these stories may be cruel, upsetting, and unworldly seeming, the boys experienced every single one of them.  Benson explains that when he and the lost boys he was traveling with left Natinga, their search for water was even more desperate than usual.  He remembers, "our mouths and throats [were] so dry it hurt to breathe", and being so thirsty that "we  collapsed on the ground" (245).  By describing how deprived they were of something simple like water, Benson is able to show the audience of people who have never experienced similar feelings how much the lost boys had to overcome.  In a world where most people have access to unlimited water at their convenience, it is shocking to hear that these boys were so thirsty that they "imagined the smell of water" (245).  With including their struggle to find such a basic need such as water, the boys are able to show the different meanings of the word "hardship" from their point of view and kids who aren't living through a civil war.
     Despite all of the life threatening encounters that the boys face during their journey to freedom, they all remain hopeful.  Through their determination, not only are they able to survive, but they also set a hopeful mood across the text to show their perseverance.  When Benson had to hide inside of a thorn bush to avoid being captured, he tried not to think about pain that he was feeling.  Instead, he explains how "Inside me, the feelings of how happy I would be to reach the camp allowed me to forget the pain of each step" (244).  He then flipped his perspective on the scars he would have from the thorn bush, stating, "I hoped that any scars would forever be a sign of my successful escape" (244).  By looking at his situation in a positive way, Benson is not only able to show his endurance but he also shows the audience that hope was really the only thing he had left to rely on.  Even when it seemed nearly impossible to find, Benson used every bit of optimism left inside of him.
     Through all three of these lost boys, a story of determination despite all odds is told.  In They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, the boys are able to put their descriptive anecdotes and hopeful mood to good use in order to educate their audience on the overlooked situation of the Sudanese Civil War.  In the end, Benson, Alepho, and Benjamin were no longer "lost boys", but boys who have found well deserved peace and freedom in their now forever home of San Diego, California.