Ascension in the Moonlight Response

I think the theme of Winchester's "Ascension in the Moonlight" is to recognize the blessings brought by one's destiny. The most direct evidence is that at the ending of the article, when the tailor said, "Wherever would you be – have you ever wondered? -without all their kindness, and without all this luck?" In my understanding, the couple's kindness represents how Winchester was blessed on this journey, and the luck represents how the blessings are destined in his destiny. Winchester narrated several times throughout the story how the Ascension Island is unpopulated and isolated, such as signing on "one of the least-used visitor's books on the planet" (p. 266), which suggested he would not intentionally plan to visit the island, either to meet the couple. He unexpectedly appeared on the island, however, at the exact right time to experience all that were incredible. After all the experiences, Winchester wrote how much he appreciated the couple's doing, and how he realized he "was at that instant blessed beyond belief, beyond all and understanding." His attitude towards this journey changed from feeling tedious in the beginning to the appreciation and recognition of all the blessings he had received in the end. He would not realize how much he is blessed without this journey, and he would not star this journey without the lead of his destiny.

I was struck by how Winchester used action verbs creatively and how he vividly structured a scene. When first arrived the Ascension Island, Winchester depicted the scene with color description and active verbs, such as "brushed with green foliage and a patch of dark cloud". I, as the reader, can picture the scene very easily. When the Wilson couple took Winchester to their house, he used a long sentence that takes seven lines to describe and introduce the buildings along the way. I love how he pinned the end of the road first and then came back to each one of them with a brief introduction.