The Ending. Question. SPOILER, of course.

[JRM]

In the end of the book, David discovers his "Excused Early" pass that he thought was stolen in the fall. I'm confused as to what it meant. I don't understand how he interpreted it as understanding God is love. Throughout the book he describes God as cruel, so I don't get how he had a change of heart or different perspective from that one pass (with the side not written presumably by Johnny). I hope I'm making sense. Anyone care to elaborate? Thanks, lol. I really hope I'm not sounding dumb.

[Jack Roman]

David's tree house they put a sign called Viet Cong lookout, I think. Anyway what was also the name of the bar in vietnamn where Johnny had his picture taken. On the day when his friend Brain was seriously hurt he had the excused early pass in his hand and a voice told something about Brian being hurt. So he went home found out Brian was in a coma and Brian's parents wanted David to go to the hospital to see Brian because they felt he could make a difference. He did go and Brian eventually came out of his coma. David pinned the excused early pass to the tree, and left it there. At the end of the book the note Johnny wrote to David was on this pass. What made it strange is that Johnny had never been to Ohio, so David didnt know where he got it from.

[Jack Roman]

Secondly, Johnny sacrificed his own life for the love of his friends. And as for being excused early, well I guess he was excused from his life early.

[JRM]

Oh, I think I see now. Thanks!

[wally wonder]

johnny picked david's pocket of the shotgun shell and replaced it with the excused early pass. david wanted to die after all that death. god had other plans. "sometimes he makes us live." perhaps the pass is a way of reminding david of that otherness he felt after visiting brian in the hospital, that sense of being a part instead of a whole. he thought he owed god, an IOU, for the answered prayer for brian's life. nope. excused early. "sometimes he makes us live."

scrawled on the note, "stay ahead of the mummy" echoes what david and brain joked about while watching the move, echoes what the voice told david to pray for when he asked there on the lookout, 'oh ****, the mummy's after us...let's all walk a little faster.'
when asked is he, david, to his telling that the verse from first john is 'god is love' he says yeah, he's everything.

which i take it is part of the message, that unlikely group of people coming together, working together, all a part of the whole, of everything. moses didn't make it to the promised land, david knew, moses died overlooking the promised land. but david gets to live and he needs to go on from there, stay ahead of the mummy. there's that, too.

[brandon]

johnny picked david's pocket of the shotgun shell and replaced it with the excused early pass. David wanted to die after all that death. God had other plans. "sometimes he makes us live." perhaps the pass is a way of reminding david of that otherness he felt after visiting brian in the hospital, that sense of being a part instead of a whole. He thought he owed god, an iou, for the answered prayer for brian's life. Nope. Excused early. "sometimes he makes us live."

scrawled on the note, "stay ahead of the mummy" echoes what david and brain joked about while watching the move, echoes what the voice told david to pray for when he asked there on the lookout, 'oh ****, the mummy's after us...let's all walk a little faster.'
when asked is he, david, to his telling that the verse from first john is 'god is love' he says yeah, he's everything.

Which i take it is part of the message, that unlikely group of people coming together, working together, all a part of the whole, of everything. Moses didn't make it to the promised land, david knew, moses died overlooking the promised land. But david gets to live and he needs to go on from there, stay ahead of the mummy. There's that, too.

yep.... Ditto