Code Talker

At just over five feet tall, Ned feels he’s too small to excel in athletics, so he resolves to study hard and become a teacher. Over the years at boarding school, he quietly excels in academics. Teachers often recognize his efforts, but he feels patronized by their praise, sensing their surprise that a Navajo boy could do well at all. When he graduates from the school, his performance has been so good that he’s accepted into the high school program. The high school is located closer to his family, which will allow for more frequent visits; the school also has better teachers than he would have otherwise. Ned recalls that this access to better instruction and resources enabled him to write a memorable report on the suffering of the Japanese, who at the time were experiencing overpopulation relative to scarce resources in their country. Kids at the high school even organized a food drive for Japanese people in need. In another bit of foreshadowing, Ned remarks that he couldn’t then know how his life would intersect with the Japanese.