Journal 6: Carmen Curtis

I feel like one of the most important characters in this book that made a real impact was Saidu. Though he hadn't been in the book or talked about his death was a big hit for me. He had been threw a lot but still didn't act as if he was worse off than any of the boys. His story of his first encounter with the rebels had impacted me so much. I could tell that he had suffered and couldn't imagine the pain that he must have felt.  I feel like his death was the turning point where Ishmael's circumstances just kept getting worse and worse. Sadu's death was the first real grievance that Ishmael had to deal with in this book. Yes, Ishmael had seen people die in front of his eyes but not anyone that he had truly called his friend or even anyone he had really known. Saidu was the one to first admit that he felt as though he was losing himself. This Statement had really hit home with everyone once we started to see Ishmael lose himself almost to the point of no return.

I feel like Ishmaels rehabilitation was such a great moment in the book. I almost cried out of happiness several times. It had shown us that even in the darkest of times there is hope for everyone as long as there are people that are willing to help. I would love for someone like him to move into my neighborhood as long as he has been rehabilitated I feel like  he would be a great asset to the community. He could speak to the people and show them that there can be hope in any situation and that we are a very lucky to live in a country that has never had to deal with anything a serious as this at a rate this large.

The main lesson that I will take from this book is that we should never judge people by their past because we weren't in their shoes to experience it ourselves therefore we cant just condemn someone when we have no idea of the struggles they have been threw to get to the point that they are at now. We can say that what he had done was wrong but we can also say that he had no idea what he was doing. He had been manipulated and had been on some serious drugs that had kept him from being in the right state of mind. He was just a child that was doing as he was told to do. "I would always tell people that I believe children have the resilience to outlive their sufferings, if given a chance."

I wish I had gotten to know more about his life in new York and more about what had happened o everyone he had known after the war finally ended. If by any chance he is still in contact with anyone from Africa and if so who?

In 2004 he graduated from Oberlin College with a B.A. in political science. Beah as also joined many Peace groups to help grow awareness of the touble children are still faceing. He now lives in Nouakchott, Mauritania with his wife and children.