his happens at such a young age, then why are we shocked when this boy shows no emotion when a loved one is hurt. This story was mind boggling to me. I could never imagine having to not only learn, but accept the fact that all my loved ones and myself are in danger at all times. There is no way a child could be happy and carefree knowing that at any moment they might have to protect themselves from something I only see in the news. However, for kids like Ronaldo, it is just second nature. All kids run and play games outside after school and all kids are given restrictions, by someone whether it be a teacher, parent, friend, guardian, or society in general, on where to go and how long to be out. However, the restrictions vary depending on location, time, gender, culture, and other specifications. These rules and regulations (or lack there of) are what make the children who they become in later life. Similar to Ronaldo, I too was not allowed to follow most of my friends after school. My mother would never even think of permitting me to leave my neighborhood when playing outside. I couldn't ride my bike down the street to the United Dairy Farmers to get ice cream on a hot summer's day like a lot of the other kids got to do. I, like Ronaldo, watched as my friends cheerfully ran in the other direction I was forbidden to go. I could never understand why mom would be so forceful about a rule I saw as ridiculous. I felt as though she was trying to keep me from having friends. It was probably the first day I really appreciated my mom when I heard about a girl a couple years older than I who had been hit by a car going to the U.D.F. It was not until then that I finally realized why my mom had been so strict about reinforcing rules. Being that it was not my close friend, the girl did not die, and my mother had different reasons for prohibiting me from following the crowd, but maybe, just possibly, Ronaldo had a little more underst...
