Reaction to Chp. 13 & 14

           I was quite surprised to read that Sal was traveling with Terry; I did not think there would be any long term commitment to her by Sal, who is now accustomed to just picking up and leaving. While I did find it strange how fast Terry and Sal become a family unit with Johnny, I felt that the two were, in their own ways, a good match; Terry is just as daring and used to moving around as Sal is. They seem to just get each other and live in the moment. The fact that Sal also becomes a father figure to Johnny also shocked me as I did not see that coming in any way at all.
           It was also interesting to hear Sal decide that he would be satisfied and content to just pick grapes and stay in a tent with Johnny and Terry, respectively his “baby boy” and “baby”. To me, this is the most he has changed in any chapter so far; he seems to have settled down. Sal has always been struggling to support himself and earn money, as in Denver with Dean and in San Francisco with Remi, but in this chapter, I feel that Sal is quite content. He has not completely given up his impulsive lifestyle, as Terry wants one too, but he has become more caring. I feel that the reason for this is that Sal, for once, has responsibility. He decides to work in the fields not only to support himself, but also to support his new family. There is even a line when he flat out states that he forgot all about Dean and Carlo and being ‘on the road’.
           But I did not expect Sal to stay with Terry because Sal is Sal and he would inevitably want to travel again. Thus, I was not surprised when he moved again at the chapter’s end. I had sensed before, but not completely thought about outright, how bittersweet each chapter is in summarizing and closing up literally, a chapter of his life. Each new one starts when he goes somewhere new, meets someone else, stays for a while, then leaves again, developing his own character along the way as he encounters all these new influences.
           It was surreal to me that Sal was actually going home in Chp. 14. It seems that he has all but given up on the West; this made me think that Sal has not truly realized how much he has changed. While it may seem obvious to us how far he has progressed since the beginning, I feel that Sal does not realize it himself. It is also interesting the way Sal’s life cycles; he gets home, ready to settle in again, only to hear that Dean has been looking for him. I get the feeling that this may be the catalyst for him to venture out and be ‘on the road’ again.