It took him a while to find out who he was.Onward · 2020 — Chapter 3 of 16 · 3'07" · B1
Dad Leaves Ian a Wizard Staff, Explained: get by
On Ian's sixteenth birthday, his mom hands him something his father left behind. "It's a gift from your dad," she says, and it turns out to be a wizard staff and a letter with a spell. What starts as a birthday present becomes a chance to bring Wilden back for one day.
What happens
Ian is turning sixteen, and his mother gives him a present his late father set aside for him and his brother. Inside are a wizard staff, a letter and a spell. The letter describes a world that once ran on magic and a father who hoped to come back for a single day to see who his boys became.
Listen for
get byback to lifefind outlong ago
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Phrase of the scene
get by
to manage with what you have, though it is not much
爸爸在信里讲世界放弃魔法之后，改用更省事的方式生活；get by 说的就是人们靠简单办法凑合着把日子过下去。
My salary is small, but we get by.
Also in this scene
- back to life
alive again after being dead, or full of energy again
- find out
to learn or discover something after looking into it
- long ago
a long time in the past, especially in stories
Everything marked in this scene
20 notes across 58 lines
I wish I'd met him.he fought so hard because he wanted to meet you more than anything.he fought so hard because he wanted to meet you more than anything.I was gonna wait until after cake, but I think you've waited long enough.It's a gift from your dad.No way.It's a wizard staff.I mean, he got interested in a lot of strange things when he got sick, but...Long ago the world was full of wonder.It was adventurous, exciting. It was adventurous, exciting, and best of all, there was magic.And that magic helped all in need.But it wasn't easy to master. And so the world found a simpler way to get by.to manage with what you have, though it is not much
But it wasn't easy to master. And so the world found a simpler way to get by.Over time, magic faded away, but I hope there's a little magic left in you.And so I wrote this spell so I could see for myself who my boys grew up to be.I don't believe this. This spell brings him back. For one whole day, Dad will be back.alive again after being dead, or full of energy again
What? Back? Like back to life?Hold on. Is this dangerous?We're about to find out.Dad Leaves Ian a Wizard Staff, explained
What's really going on
The gift is doing two things at once. It is a father reaching across his own death, and it is a nudge telling Ian to become someone. The letter admits the world gave up magic for an easier life — "Over time, magic faded away, but I hope there's a little magic left in you" — and that line is really the whole film's thesis in one sentence. On the surface Ian is unwrapping a birthday present; underneath he is being handed a quest and a father's hope that his sons are braver than the world around them. When the reveal shifts from a staff to a real spell, the scene stops being sentimental and becomes a promise the boys have to live up to.
Theme
Family loveA dead father's words reach his sons through a letter, turning a birthday gift into an act of love that outlasts him.
IdentityThe letter urges Ian to find out who he is and hopes some magic remains in him, tying the gift to growing up.
What you'll learn
- Use about to for an imminent action.
- Use more than anything for strongest desire.
- Understand get by as “manage somehow.”
- Use grow up to be for future identity.
- Notice how "find out" changes the exchange.
Over time, magic faded away, but I hope there's a little magic left in you.The letter's closing wish: the world traded wonder for convenience, but the father hopes his son still carries some of it.
he fought so hard because he wanted to meet you more than anything.A line that explains the father's illness and death as a fight to stay alive long enough to see his son — love stated as endurance.
And so I wrote this spell so I could see for myself who my boys grew up to be.The reason the spell exists: not power, but a father's wish to witness his children's lives.
It took him a while to find out who he was.A gentle reassurance that even a confident-sounding dad struggled to figure himself out, so the son does not have to have it all figured out yet.
Questions about this scene
Why did Wilden leave a visitation spell?
He wanted to see his sons grown up, even for a single day. The spell is his way of being present for a moment he knew he would otherwise miss.
What does 'get by' mean in the letter?
It describes how the world coped once magic got hard: people found simpler ways to get by, meaning to manage or survive without much effort.
Why does Ian want to cast the spell?
Because he never really knew his father, and the spell offers one day with him. It is less about magic than about getting the father he missed.
Is the gift really from Ian's dad?
Yes. His mother had kept it, and the letter and staff were prepared by Wilden before he died, meant for both brothers.
Onward · 16 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 4Whatever it takesDad Comes Back as Just Legs
Chapter 1wiggle out ofIan's Sixteenth Birthday Morning
Chapter 2was wondering ifIan's Awkward Party Invite
Watching · Chapter 3get byDad Leaves Ian a Wizard Staff
Chapter 4Whatever it takesDad Comes Back as Just Legs
Chapter 5followed my gutThe Manticore Refuses to Help
Chapter 6took the easy routeBarley Picks the Path of Peril
Chapter 7go bonkersLaurel Asks the Manticore for Help
Chapter 8wear offThe Growth Spell Backfires
Chapter 9not what it used to beThe Manticore Explains the Curse
Chapter 10With all due respectIan Talks His Way Past Bronco
Chapter 11chin upBarley Trains Ian With the Sword
Chapter 12the worst that can happenIan Crosses the Trust Bridge
Chapter 13to the count of threeIan Tries the Arcane Lightning Spell
Chapter 14don't have a clueIan Blames Barley for the Detour
Chapter 15gauntletIan and Barley Take the Wrong Path
Chapter 16looked out for meIan Thanks Barley for EverythingChapter 3 of 16 · about 72 min to go