On a heavy summer afternoon, when the heat seemed to slow everything down, a five-year-old named Eli noticed something the adults around him had chosen to ignore.
He was outside drawing dinosaurs on the driveway while his mother sat nearby with a glass of sweet tea. Down the street, an older mail carrier moved slowly beneath the sun, his uniform visibly soaked from the heat. Some neighbors watched from a distance, whispering and laughing.
Eli did not laugh. He looked concerned.
“Mom,” he asked quietly, “why’s everyone being mean to him?”