With growth from childhood to adolescence comes the struggle to transform into your own person. Whether that might mean an evolution in your version of yourself, or an alteration to become someone else's vision of who you should be. When a child is forced to move away from their family in an attempt to erase tradition and culture, starting over is terrifying. The struggle and journey to cultivate one's path, all thrown into a completely new culture, will be met with a constant struggle. This is why the heartbreaking struggles with abuse and addiction are so highly illustrated in Saul's story in Indian Horse. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay With a childhood filled with many systems of bicycle abuse, Saul must find a way to escape. During his youth, hockey filled the void. By joining a local hockey league, Saul was able to focus on the game and his teammates and take his mind off reality. “We were hockey gypsies, driving down another dirt road every weekend, deep into the heart of that magnificent northern landscape. We never felt like we would be deprived on the trip, that we would be left out of the regular league system. We never thought of ourselves as Indians. Different. We only thought about the game and the brotherhood that united us off the ice, in the van, on the plank floors of the reservations' houses, in the truckers' restaurants where if we won we would have something to spend on a hamburger and soup before we hit the road again. Small joys. All tied together, woven together to form an experience we wouldn't trade for any other. We were a league of nomads, crazy for the game, crazy for the road, crazy for the ice and snow, an arctic wind on our faces and a frozen puck on the blade of our sticks." With some natural talent and newfound beginner skills, Saul gave his all in every match. Undersized, but not without talent, Saul is rewarded by joining a new hockey team. Racism soon rears its ugly head and Saul is kicked off the team for his "Indian" heritage. Amid the story's ups and downs, Saul is soon rewarded with an invitation to join "Team Moose" and settle in with a new family. When Saul begins traveling with his team, fighting becomes the new norm. Opposing teams "became vengeful and no cheap shot went unpaid with punches." Saul's gift and natural talent for hockey does not endear his teammates. Constantly subjected to racist insults, physical and mental abuse during his gambling, his addiction and his escape. Saul's small frame was an opportunity for double body control, or an opportunity for the other team to surround him, and, in Saul's words, an opportunity to “chase me, hit me, grab me. Every time I touched the record in those sessions, there was a body. Every time I turned around, someone was right at me. This cyclical pattern of abuse that Saul endures does not leave the physical mark one might assume, rather it strikes more deeply with hidden wounds. The constant struggle to persevere through it all while successfully leading his teams to victory, despite underlying issues, truly shows a strong disposition, unlike anything I've ever seen before. How a child, so young to be burdened with such heavy and burdensome life experiences, can still have the drive and such an obligation to “his team” is remarkable. With parents who survived the destruction of culture and.