The scarlet ibis

The author uses weather as a form of foreshadowing. Storms and natural occurrences, foreshadow from the very beginning what will happen at the end. The narrator and Doodle face a huge obstacle in the way of their goal when they experience a terrible summer full of droughts, storms, and failed crops. The lost cotton crop that Doodle and the narrator go outside with their father to see represents Doodle himself. The crops were frail and could not survive the stress placed on them throughout the summer, so they wilt and die. Doodle will ultimately do the same, but he and the narrator are not aware of this yet—they still believe everything is going to be all right.