As individuals progress through life, everything is measured in some way by time. To understand the use of time in literature, the reader must see time as movement from one event to another in chronological order. It is when the writer changes the order of events in a story that the reader must piece together what they are reading to understand the material. In "Once More to the Lake" by E.B. White, time is used to compare the lake's current environment to what it was like when he went there as a child. When comparing the present with the past the writer must go into detail about certain aspects of the place in order to maintain some sort of legitimacy. Starting from the past, White can quickly move from time spent with his father to time spent with his son. Although he switches back and forth between past and present, White's use of tense makes the reading much easier to follow. In a story that is constantly transitioning between past and present, it is important to keep track of the use of tense, any type of error could confuse the reader. “Once More at the Lake” demonstrates White's love of consistency that comes from growing up into adulthood. White sets the stage halfway through the first paragraph, mentioning that he and his father "returned summer after summer," longing to one day return to the place he had enjoyed so much. This trip back to the lake brings back so many memories, as if time didn't pass. It is during this trip that White realizes that his son has the same enthusiasm as when he was a boy. For White, all this comes as a shock because now his role is reversed, from an energetic child to a lifeless parent, as his father remembered when... middle of paper ......n in 7 years. As we approached the building, memories began to flash through my mind, what it was once like to not have a care in the world. From then on it was just thought after thought of how things used to be. The fact that the cafeteria felt like the biggest room ever, that the playground was a place of endless fun, and that getting a "pink slip" was the worst punishment in the world. Returning to a place where I spent much of my childhood caused me to reflect on how things had changed since I left and what kind of person I had become. Like White in “Once More at the Lake,” I experienced the feeling of realizing that I am no longer a child and that I will never get those years back. While time generally plays an important role in life, it is even more important to understand and learn from important experiences that occur throughout your life..