Blog Post # 6: Book Club # 2 (We'll Fly Away by Bryan Bliss)

         We’ll Fly Away by Bryan Bliss is a book about friendship, child abuse, and how so many people look the other way. I remember reading somewhere, ‘God does not define us by our past, but the enemy will try to keep us there.’ We are not defined by one single moment in our lives. I think this book is about that too and so much more. In the book, Luke said that he and Toby never had a choice, but Toby could have chosen to go to Luke when he crashed the truck, he could have chosen to not go with Lily that day they played hooky, and he could have gone to Luke’s match instead of chasing after Lily. It’s a story about how we sometimes all reach that point when we just want to escape from it all – to fly away!

        The story is narrated in the third person, but the author included letters written by Luke to Toby. I think the author wants me to experience what it feels like to lose your best friend and how we all need to consider the consequences of our actions.

        It really surprised me how many people just looked the other way. Everyone saw the bruises on Toby, but no one did anything to help except Luke. The author thinks that the reader knows that child abuse is not normal yet there are people who know and still do nothing. I know child abuse is not normal but what really got me thinking were the consequences of people’s inactions. I noticed that one action by Luke does not define him as a person. Luke may have killed three people that night, but I cannot say, that he as a person was a murderer. Luke looked after his twin brothers, he was good at wrestling, he had good values, and he cared about Toby. To Luke, Toby was somebody – he was his best friend even though a teacher had told Toby that he was nothing.

        This book taught me so much. It taught me what true friendship means. For me, when you are friends with someone, your only regret is losing that person and not doing everything you could to help him. This book proved that, but it made me realize how there are still ways to help, and we must make the effort – we must choose to do something!

        I plan to teach grade 4 – 8 science and there is good and bad in science. Viruses can be created in labs with the potential to cause grave harm like COVID but vaccines can also be created to do good. Students need to learn that there are consequences due to their actions and inactions. When they know that something is wrong or can cause harm to others, they need to speak up. Children need to feel safe at school; they need to be able to trust teachers and to confide in them when they are in danger or feel threatened. In Texas, it is against the law to NOT report suspected child abuse, so teachers need to set good examples. Not just because it is the law but because it is the right thing to do and students need to feel that they are being protected and safe.

        I believe that it is important for teachers to create an atmosphere where students are not afraid to speak up. I can have a class discussion and ask students their thoughts on viruses being created in labs. I can divide the class into two groups and have students debate whether or not they think viruses should be created in labs. I believe that it’s also important to create a good classroom environment where students respect and care for each other. In the book, another student would bully Toby because his dad had abused him. Students need to be encouraged to care for each other and not just themselves. Real family is when we protect and care for one another and Luke was the only real family that Toby had.