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Throughout Antonio's conflicts with experiencing too many deaths, Rudolfo Anaya portrays the theme that people who grow up too fast may experience types of emotions that one may not be ready for at such a young age.

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Antonio learns to see the bright side of things. 

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Antonio learns to see the bright side of things. 

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“I had been afraid of the awful presence of the river, which was the soul of the river, but through her I learned that my spirit shared in the spirit of all things” (15).

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Antonio is starting to mature and worry about important things that are going on. 

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Antonio is starting to mature and worry about important things that are going on. 

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“Perhaps this is what drew me out into the night to follow my father and Chàvez down to the bridge, or perhaps it was some concern I had for my father” (17).

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Antonio has to go through experiencing the pain that only adults should feel. 

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Antonio has to go through experiencing the pain that only adults should feel. 

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"Lupito's pistol sounded again. Still he was not aiming at the men on the bridge. He was shooting to draw their fire! ‘Shoot! Shoot!’ someone on the bridge called. ‘No, no,’ I whispered through clenched lips. But it was too late for anything" (22).

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“‘What’da yah say, Tony, you goin’ be her priest!’ ‘Bless us, Tony!’ They knelt on the ground and raised their arms up and then down towards me. I grew frightened at their wild actions, but I found enough strength to shout at them. ‘I will bless you!’ I cried and made the sign of the cross, like I had done in the dream” (69).

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Antonio is standing up for the people he cares for and protecting them. 

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Antonio is standing up for the people he cares for and protecting them. 

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“Some of the men had drawn charcoal crosses on their foreheads. I trembled. I was afraid, but I vowed to Ultima” (129).

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Antonio is learning to stick up for himself and the people he cares about.

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Antonio is learning to stick up for himself and the people he cares about.

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“‘Come on, Tony’ Ernie said coming closer,  ‘she is a witch, ain't she! They were going to burn her, huh!’ ‘They would have to drive a stake through her heart to make it legal,’ Loyd said. ‘She is not a witch; she is a good woman.’ I answered. I barely heard myself speak… ‘You calling me a liar!’ Ernie shouted in my face. His saliva was hot and bitter… ‘Yes!’ I shouted in his face. I had felt like running away, but I remembered my father and Narciso standing firm for Ultima” (146).

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The universe keeps putting Antonio in these positions where he has to be mature at a young age.

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The universe keeps putting Antonio in these positions where he has to be mature at a young age.

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“‘Confess me–’ I placed my ear to his mouth and heard his muffled confession. I felt the tears running now, flooding my eyes and blinding me, flowing into the corners of my mouth, and I felt great sobs choking at my throat, trying to get me loose” (170).

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Antonio isn't pleased with his life and hopes to find God. 

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Antonio isn't pleased with his life and hopes to find God. 

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“We waited quietly. Then the priest came to our side. The girls were already filling back to their seats. The altar boy held the gold platter under each chin, the priest mumbled something in Latin and placed the host on the tongue. He moved fast” (220).

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Antonio keeps having to face these problems about growing up too fast.

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Antonio keeps having to face these problems about growing up too fast.

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“‘He drowned, he drowned,’ Bones whimpered. ‘How long?’ I wanted to know, ‘how long has he been in the water?’ But their fright would not let them answer. I felt Cico's hand on my shoulder" (239).

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Antonio has to learn to be a grown man even though he is just a little kid. 

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Antonio has to learn to be a grown man even though he is just a little kid. 

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"He cursed and fired. The thundering report of the rifle followed the flash of fire. That shot destroyed the quiet, moonlit peace of the hill, and it shattered my childhood into a thousand fragments that long ago stopped falling and are now dusty relics gathered in distant memories" (240).

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Being away from his parents and everyone Antonio cares about teaches him maturity without dealing with any deaths. 

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Being away from his parents and everyone Antonio cares about teaches him maturity without dealing with any deaths. 

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“I grew strong with the work and good food. I learned much from those men who were as dark and quiet as the earth of the valley, and what I learned made me stronger inside” (250).

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“‘Take them to their room,’ I said to my mother. It was the first time I had ever spoken to my mother as a man; she nodded and obeyed” (259).

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Ultima sees that ever since her arrival Antonio has reached maturity at such a young age. He has learned that "as a man grows he sees life and death, he is happy and sad" (59). Antonio was just a little kid, he was just getting his life started when all of a sudden he gets pushed into the river of maturity. He learns to mature at a young age in order to be strong and be there for his loved ones. He goes through many deaths and pain in order to reach his "maturity".