Part 5: Moving On

Part 5: Moving On

Summary:

In the final section of The Boy Who Fell Out of the Sky Ken meets up with the last of David's old friends/colleagues. The one that plays the biggest role in this section is Rina, an ex-girlfriend of David. Ken and Rina catch up over the phone and Ken schedules a trip to Israel to visit her. Later Ken learns that Rina is married with a two-year old. In Israel, Rina gave a few of David's old notebooks, that she had forgotten about, to Ken. Among these also includes a few recordings that David had left for Ken in college. After going through everything, Ken realizes that he needs to find closure when it comes to David. After a relaxing trip, spending time with Rina and her family, Ken returns to America and to his pregnant wife, K. His married life isn't what he expected it would be and it acts as just another reason to put an end to all his "David Research". Ken finds himself locked upstairs in his office, with a desk crowded with papers, pretending to be productive. His lack of income and finished projects causes much unneeded stress between him and K. K points out that he is losing himself due to trying to figure out every last detail about David. This proposition provokes a very important question in Ken's mind. Why? Why is he doing this? Why is he spending every minute of his life focussing on his dead brother's old life? In the last section of this book, Ken describes his thought process during this time. He goes in depth about the stress he is dealing with, how he overcomes it, and he sums up the book with a letter he wrote to David, many years after his death. This is Ken's way of saying that he'll always have David in his heart, but it's time for him to move on. Ken finally understands that in order to honor David, he doesn't have to spend all is time trying to connect the puzzle pieces of his brother's life. No. In order to honor David he must do what David always wanted him to do; live his life.

Ken with his son (Taken by K) 

Review:

This was by far my favorite section! Ken summed up his whole experience and what he learned over the last few years in a short and sweet section. It makes it easier for the reader to then remember his lessons and apply them to their daily life. I'm so grateful that Ken took an honest approach to his writing, because it allows the readers to feel involved with the story and learn along with all the characters. This section also serves as one of my favorites mainly because Ken finally seems happy and appreciative of his situation. Instead of repeating to himself that "everything will okay", he now knows that everything is already okay. 

Ken Dornstein NOW

Focus: Why do you think Ken finally decided to put an end to his research? 

I think that Ken's visit to Israel impacted his decision to move on. Seeing Rina with her new life as a mother and wife probably showed Ken that it's okay to move on from somebody you love, because that's most likely what they wanted you to do. After experiencing first-hand how Rina focussed all her attention of her child and husband, and how that translated to a happier life, gave Ken the idea of doing the same for himself and K. I'm sure it was a bittersweet moment for Ken, finishing this book and packing away David's old notebooks. All of his research of David took up a long period of time! It became his life. I think that Ken started doing this because David always pointed out their similarities. David, being as creative and intelligent as he was, could've amounted to so much. Maybe Ken thought that if he researched the entirety of David's past, that he could pick up from where David left off, and follow that road to success. I'm glad that Ken finally realized that the main thing that he has in common with his brother is determination. Determination will get you far in life. It would've gotten David far in his life, and after Ken learned that that's what David saw in both of them, it has gotten Ken far in his life. Just because they share the same trait, Ken finally realized that the beauty of determination is that it can be applied to anything. David wasn't expecting Ken to become him, he was expecting him to learn from his mistakes, and become a "better him". 

Sources: 

1. The actual recording that David made for Ken that documented his college life: 

http://boywhofelloutofthesky.com/2006/03/welcome_sort_of.html

2. A New York Times review on this book. I found it interesting to compare their thoughts on the book to my own.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/19/books/19grim.html?_r=0

3. Ken summing up his experience:
http://www.boywhofelloutofthesky.com/media/preview.html