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Part 6: Martin, August 2003
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in I Will Always Write Back, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Kindness and Generosity
Friendship
Family
Education
Summary
Analysis
Caitlin’s mom is angry that FedEx’s 48-hour guarantee doesn’t apply to Africa. They worry that the tickets won’t get to Martin in time. Caitlin’s mom calls Villanova, and they say they’ll hold a spot for him until January if he can’t get there in time, but Caitlin’s mom doesn’t want Martin to wait that long. Caitlin’s dad says they should tell Martin to go to the airport—one way or another, he’s getting on the plane.
Caitlin’s family experiences the same stress as Martin. They’ve achieved so much on his behalf, and it would be particularly heartbreaking to lose it all after the hardest part is over. Once again, the problems with the FedEx delivery show how in certain parts of the world, institutions like a reliable postal system can’t be taken for granted.
Themes
