When Heaven and Earth Changed Places: Ch. 1 Coming Back

The first chapter of When Heaven and Earth Changed Places threw me into the world of little Le Ly's childhood experiences and memories. Le Ly, as the youngest child in her family, learned a great deal about her heritage and customs from her parents. From her father,Trong, she learns about the war and he helps her reason why the war is happening. Her mother,Huyen, teaches Le Ly about family and love. In one way, Le Ly's mother was like Eleanor Roosevelt's mother-in-law.

Last year in my World Literature class, I did a research essay and presentation on Eleanor Roosevelt. When she married Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Eleanor had to learn how to be a proper wife. Her mother-in-law did not see Eleanor being a fit wife for her son. Le Ly learned "a good wife needn't care too much about her husband's wealth provided she protected what wealth he had" (10). Le Ly's mother worked to teach her youngest daughter about the love she needed for her husband and how to raise a family.

Throughout the chapter, many anecdotes are used to describe certain situations in Le Ly's life. On page sixteen, Le Ly recounts a story her mother told her about their neighbors. "On this day, the only two people who did not hear the alarm were our neighbors. The husband was out back cutting wood and the wife was inside doing chores. They were young, newly married, and daydreamed a lot" (16). Le Ly's mother continues to explain that the woman was raped and both the husband and wife were tortured to death.