Ithaca

In 1942, 14-year-old Homer Macauley takes a job delivering telegrams to support his widowed mother and siblings. He is determined to be the best and fastest bicycle telegraph messenger in Ithaca, CA, practicing his routes and learning to carry grown-up responsibilities. His ambition marks the beginning of a journey that mixes camaraderie, fear, and hard lessons.

On his very first delivery, Homer reads a telegram aloud for a Hispanic woman who cannot read English. The message, from the Secretary of Defense, informs her of her son's death in the war. The encounter forces him to confront the personal cost of global conflict.

Marcus and many other young men have gone off to World War II, leaving families anxious and hopeful. Their father has died recently in the war, compounding the Macauleys' burden. The town collectively reckons with the distance of war and the daily need for news.

Marcus writes regularly from the front, describing life in the war and reassuring Homer that he must take care of the family in his absence. He reminds him that he's the man of the house now, increasing the weight Homer carries. These letters reshape Homer’s sense of responsibility.

At the telegraph office, Homer helps keep Willie Grogan alert, waking him with cold water and strong coffee. He gradually assumes a larger role in the daily rhythms of the office and in the lives of those who rely on the messages. The work tightens his grip on his own childhood.

As he transmits telegrams of love, longing, and news of death, Homer loses his boyish innocence and becomes aware of the harsher realities people endure. The stream of messages teaches him that happiness and tragedy can arrive on the same route. His perspective begins to harden while his empathy deepens.

Homer's mother Katie sometimes 'sees' her late husband Matthew, a sign of their shared grief. The next day, Homer opens up to her about envying Ulysses' fearlessness, and Katie's vision deepens their bond as she recognizes his pain. Their conversations reveal how the war permeates home life.

That evening, the little boy Ulysses is frightened by a half-man, half-machine window display in town, a surreal reminder of the era’s industrial pressure. The moment shows how even the youngest are unsettled by the war’s presence. The family and townsfolk absorb it as a symbol of looming danger.

One night, Homer reads a letter from Marcus aloud to Mr. Grogan, sharing Marcus’s fear of losing his brother and his resolve to shut out the world if that happens. The moment crystallizes the intimate stakes behind the war’s distant headlines. It also deepens Homer's sense of responsibility and fear.

The next afternoon, Homer checks on Mr. Grogan and discovers him dead after typing one last telegraph message he had dreaded. Grogan's death underlines the toll of war on ordinary workers who keep people connected. Homer is left to carry on without his mentor.

Toby, a fellow soldier, and Homer arrive at the Macauleys' home with the devastating news that Marcus has died in the war. The family is shattered, and the community is reminded of the war's cost. The moment marks a turning point for Homer as he confronts permanent loss.

In the wake of a double loss—Grogan and Marcus—Homer stands at a threshold of adulthood, absorbing the responsibilities and heartbreak of a world at war. He continues delivering messages while carrying his family's sorrow and the memory of those who did not return. His experience consolidates his maturity and hints at the resilience of the town.