When you are young, you have the power to shape your character and future through your choices. Being kind and decent as a child leads to becoming a kind and decent person as you grow up, highlighting the importance of moral decisions during formative years.
"When u are small, u can choose which way to grow. If you are kind and decent, you grow into a kind and decent man. And if you are like El Patron… Just think about it." – Tam Lin, from Nancy Farmer's The House of the Scorpion, emphasizes that choices made early in life affect the kind of person you become, warning against negative influences such as El Patron.