“Maybe me and Lisbeth and Little Arliss and Papa and mama and friends of ours, like Burn Sanderson, didn’t amount to anymore in this world than any other living creature. But like all the other creatures-- like the buffalo, the screwworm, the prairie wolf, the high-flying goose, or the hole-digging gopher-- our lives were important to us, and each of us would fight to keep them just as long as we could-- and try to help those we loved do the same.”
In this quote, Travis considers the importance of his life in the grand scheme of things. After the ordeal he experienced in this story, his perspective on life has changed, and he realizes that their lives are as valuable as any other creature, but are also not objectively more valuable. He acknowledges that their lives are not significant or important in the grand scheme of things, but that each person's life has meaning to them and their loved ones, which is what truly matters.
"Again, his faint, far-carrying trail cry came riding in on the still morning air. The sound of it raised a lump in my throat and put the sting of tears in my eyes."
This story is partly about the wilderness, and the skills needed to survive while far away from civilization. As such, many readers of this story have enjoyed hearing Gipson's accounts of survival and the wilderness. For example, Gipson describes how Savage Sam uses his sense of smell to track the children and ultimately save them. In this passage, Travis can hear Sam trying to find them.
“I could ride there beside him and hate him. I could tell myself that I hoped he bled to death before sundown. But watching him run like he did, I couldn’t help marveling."
In this passage, Travis sees his capturer in a different light and is able to see his strengths. This is Gipson's attempt to show the captors in a different light, showing a more "human" side to them. Throughout the rest of the text, the captors are depicted in a negative light and this is one of the only passages where they are depicted positively.
