Davie is not like his older brother Solomon.
In fact, he works hard at being different.
He never makes his bed for weeks at a time.
He wears the same grungy shirt until it falls off in shreds.
He never washes his hands before dinner, and often comes to the table late.
He doesn’t brush his teeth, has never been to a dentist, doesn’t floss,
And avoids eating his vegetables, except for green beans.

He spends his allowance on wine, women, and song, and friends Zeke and Abe, who are always in trouble.
He frets about not having more money for wine, women, and songs.
He avoids work, quitting early if Solomon is not around to yell at him.
He loves upsetting his older brother, tries to do so as often as he can.

Many nights Davie sits out under the Milky Way and dreams of what the world out there must be like.

Nearly every day, Solomon complains to their father,
“That kid is no good, lazy, irresponsible, and destined to destruction. Father, you need to do something about him.”
Davie says,
“I’m not lazy. I just have different priorities.
Life is too short to spend behind a plow on this stupid farm.
I just want to be free to live my own life in my own way.”

He's sure he could make a go of it, given a chance.