Summary Of Sáenz's Poem Titled '

As Ari sits next to his father and watches him thumb through a book of art, he has the urge to ask him about his life before the war. Sáenz writes: “I could have asked my father lots of questions. I could have. But there was something in his face and eyes and in his crooked smile that prevented me from asking” (37). Ari’s fear-based forfeiture of this rare moment is shown through his repetition of the words “could have,” which directly speak to the missed possibilities in this scene. Additionally, Sáenz’s use of the word “crooked,” denotes twisted out of place or broken; his father is irreparably damaged from the horrors of war. Therefore, Ari’s voice in this excerpt explicates how he knows it is better to live with unanswered questions than …show more content…
Similarly, Ari silences himself after he and Dante get into an altercation over a dead bird, and both boys are left emotional. Ari narrates: “We put the bird in the hole and buried it. Neither of us said a word” (54). In the physical text, these two sentences are written on separate lines, literally leaving the page mostly empty, just as the air between the boys is empty, or silent. Here, the somberness of the event leads Sáenz to shorten sentences, which in turn leads to a more serious tone. In this excerpt, the use of the word “buried” is multidimensional, as Ari and Dante have just un -“buried” their emotions and made themselves newly vulnerable, but the possibility of making the situation worse scares them to a point of silence. “Buried” additionally brings up connotations of death, and while the death of the bird is apparent, a feeling of sameness has died within Ari and Dante. They have realized just how different they are because of their opposite reactions to the bird, but neither Ari nor Dante know how to address that without further hurting the other, so they are left with