Eddie Meet In Heaven

Throughout the novel, Eddie’s interactions with the five people he meets in heaven help him learn about the surprising ways in which both life and death offer opportunities for forgiveness. From when Eddie arrived in heaven, to when he met his last person, his views had changed drastically. Before, he was once a grouchy old man who had problems moving on from the past. Now, he has grown and discovered that he can forgive others and even himself. With this theme of the novel, it has helped me to understand that in order to find peace, one must be able to forgive. Upon meeting his first person, Eddie was in absolute denial. He wasn’t ready to believe that he was in heaven, or that his actions as a child had lead to the ultimate demise of the …show more content…
Eddie hated his father and blamed him for ruining his life. He had so much anger and resentment bottled up inside of him that he never let go of, even after his father’s death. He cursed his father for trapping him in the very life that he had been trying to escape from. When Eddie met Ruby, he was forced to try and understand his father. In order to move on, he also had to understand why he hated his father and why he no longer needed to. Ruby urged Eddie to forgive his father, and Eddie knew deep down that that was the right thing to do. Eddie approached his father, who could not hear a single word he said, and spoke. As the words fell from his mouth, it was like all of his feelings came pouring out. Eddie still did not understand why his father beat him or shut him out, but he was able to find a place in his heart to forgive him. That was a big step for Eddie, and it helped him to forgive himself as well for allowing his mind to get clouded by the bitterness he held towards his …show more content…
She is Eddie’s last person, and probably the most important one. At first, the two are having a harmless conversation, and Eddie even makes her a small dog out of pipe cleaners. Then she said three words, three words that sent a streak of dread throughout Eddie’s body. You burn me. Eddie slowly began to realize that Tala was the person he saw in the hut back when he was in the army. He killed her. Just the thought alone caused him to break down. He begged for forgiveness, and that was what he got. Eddie protected the children at the amusement park and kept them safe with his job. That alone was enough to obtain forgiveness from