White expresses his sentiments of living via his kid several times throughout the article. He also frequently writes on how he feels as if no time has passed since the last time he was at the lake, when he was a youngster. He does this to emphasize the lake's significance to him as a symbol of his boyhood. Finally, White mentions that even though the lake is small, it makes him feel happy and safe whenever he goes there. The main idea of the essay is loyalty. White shows that he is loyal to his family, friends, and community. This loyalty manifests itself in different ways throughout the piece. For example, when his friend dies, he writes that he will always remember how they used to go fishing together at Lake Wobegon every summer. This proves that loyalty can bring people together from all over the world to enjoy a common interest: fishing! Loyalty is important because it means never giving up on someone who needs your support. Even though White isn't related to his friend by blood, they shared a bond because they were both loyal to each other. This shows that even though we may not know each other personally, we can still get along thanks to our similarities and differences. For example, I would probably die before I'd let someone cheat at chess with me (I'm sure you have your own stories like this), but that doesn't mean we couldn't get along anyway.