"Ascension in the Moonlight Response"

In “Ascension in the Moonlight,” Simon Winchester demonstrates the value of human kindness and how it can be discovered in the most unexpected of places. Initially for Winchester, Ascension Island was droll and forgettable, the location simply serving as a means for the author to return home faster. Due to the hospitality of strangers, however, Winchester forms invaluable friendships and witnesses sea turtles giving birth along with a passing comet, noting that it “was perhaps the greatest wealth of experience that any one individual could ever know in one moment.” Winchester beautifully describes the events around him, invoking several senses of his readers such as in line, “...the soft and sugary sand took on an appearance just like snow--the sea beyond it black, its waves crashing rhythmically on the shore…” Invoking visual, tactile, and auditory imagery all at once, the author creates a detailed window into the unique world he is experiencing. Lastly, ‘“Wherever would you be...without all their kindness…”’ a line spoken to Winchester by his tailor, is effective in cementing the importance of the strangers’ kindness to the readers--without it, Winchester likely would’ve never been able to witness once-in-a-lifetime events or develop such profound friendships.