“Ashes” Reading Response                               Juliette Daignault 802

             Divorce is a major difficulty that many teens face in their life. In the short story “Ashes” by Susan Beth Pfeffer, the reader is brought into the life of a girl named Ashes who is affected by the challenges of divorce. During this time Ashes feels the weight of being torn between her very different parents. Her father who makes promises he cannot keep and her mother who is grounded and realistic. In the story, we can see how complicated relationships affect the choices we make.

            In the story the character Ashes talks about her father in a kind, caring way, making him sound like a special person in Ashes’ life. He gives her what she thinks she wants, and she loves him for it.  For example, Ashes says, “That winter, it felt like every time I saw my father, the sun cast off just a little more warmth than it had the day before.” We can compare this quote to how winters are cold and bland, like what her life could be like. But then, it explains when she’s with her father its seems to be warmer, meaning her father makes her feel happy. Ashes describes her father as wonderful person to be around, and someone she feels comfortable with. As the story progresses her father asks her a deeper question that may change opinions on whether he is truly a good person. Ashes’ father asks her to take money from her mother’s “safe jar.” “I looked out the window and saw only ash gray sky. In the cold stillness of the night, I could hear my fathers car keening in the distance.” At this moment Ashes is deciding whether to take the money. When she looks out she describes the sky as gray and dark, unlike how she had mentioned him before. This leads us to believe that her father in the end was not the parent who provided for Ashes.

            Not only is Ashes’ relationship with her father complicated, but she also has a complex relationship with her mother as well. She never portrays her mother as being a unique or impactful person. “With Mom, there are a lot of rainy days and she takes a grim sort of pleasure in being ready for them.” This quote is also a metaphor in saying her mother isn’t the parent who makes things necessarily fun or gives Ashes what she thinks she wants. We can see that there is a drastic difference in how Ashes describes her mother from her father in the beginning of the story. Ashes makes her father seem like the better parent and her mother less important. Yet, after Ashes dad asks her to take the money from her mother we question who the better parent is. “The apartment was quiet. It always felt a little colder when mom wasn’t there. Even with the lights on, it seemed a little darker.” This is where Ashes’ feelings towards her mother shift. This is after Ashes’ dad asks her to take the money. Ashes is now describing what it feels like without the mother and is now mentioning the mother as the one who provides the warmth and light in her life. Now, we see how Ashes might be realizing that the mother has been the one who has been giving her what she needs.

            This story shows us how people can be more complicated then they show themselves to be. The story on the whole might be teaching us a lesson on how relationships can complicate even the simplest things. Taking money from someone is wrong in many senses, but yet for Ashes it is something she really has to think about. This may be the result of how her own relationships complicated making decisions of wrong from right hard. This can be a real life lesson as well, and should be something to learn from. The complications of others around us can influence how we make our own choices. All teens can apply this to themselves when making decisions and take into account who has affected the choices we make.