First life is about survival. Evelyn can only focus on her hunger and her next meal. Food insecurity causes the same problem in many children’s lives. Children do better when their needs are met. Children take this mentality into their adulthood. Evelyn grows strong after she learns to trust Banele.
In the second life, Evelyn wants to learn how to complete a task on her own. Evelyn learns that not every instinct is safe. Evelyn has a helpful teacher to guide her through the uncomfortable experience of learning to catch a mouse. She grows to trust herself and not live in her past mistakes.
The third life has Evelyn trying to be different to catch a pesky mouse. Evelyn tries to be a bird with some comical results. Evelyn tries to be a frog, but realizes she has to accept herself to catch the mouse.
The fourth life Evelyn develops a role in her community. Children try to find what they are good at and how they will relate to their peers. As I wrote this story, I thought about how I had to grow to be a part of the team. Children that feel that they are not able to find their niche, then they develop low self esteem. I think some of these feelings I had from my childhood were brought into my adulthood. Probably other adults feel the same.
The fifth life Evelyn is trying to find her identity to make her owner happy. I think most children try to make their parents happy. I think it takes time to find out what makes yourself happy. I think having a caregiver that encourages the child to pursue whatever makes them happy helps the child find security to try many things.
The sixth life is about dealing with isolation. Evelyn is alone in New York. Evelyn meets a homeless person, Angela, who becomes her best friend. Angela is important to me, she is one the few owners that has a name. I think people need to see that there is a person and history behind the homelessness.
The seventh life is about trying to find beauty in the mundane. Evelyn has very little to look forward to and she lets herself go. Evelyn finds beauty in the ordinary. I hope to take this attitude in my everyday life.
The eighth life represents the life of an elderly adult. I had to think about what I would want to be when I got to that stage in my life. I think it is difficult to describe the regrets that people have as they age to a child. I think most people wish they had told people their true feelings. Hopefully I can learn to do that more.
The ninth life is the afterlife. No one knows what happens after a person dies. I looked up a lot of stories for common themes in near death experiences. I leave it up to interpretation because it can mean many things to many people but I think I want people to experience the presence of love as they enter that final resting place.
