Barbara and her son Dickie, having only been used to the quiet countryside, are surprised and a little intimidated by the loud commotion at the urban park. There are countless children with bicycles that ride them with a viciousness that Barbara thinks is more mythical than childish, but she projects her feeling of inferiority onto her son by promising him a bike at Christmas. They make their way to the swing sets and see that the commotion at the park is not really about the noise, but the conflict. Children yell at their mothers, and the mothers, in turn, threaten their children. Across the park, two of the fathers get into a verbal fight - and everyone is transfixed, including Barbara, who realizes that she is not as distressed as she pretends to be. In fact, seeing the fathers fight appears to be cathartic for everyone, and the tense atmosphere relaxes into one of quiet familial love once more. Dickie befriends one of the construction workers and is so thrilled at having a new friend that he refuses to leave when Barbara says they must go home. But the worker encourages Dickie to go and eat so that he can be strong enough to fight with the 'big men' someday. On their way home, Barbara and Dickie encounter a man feeding pigeons - Dickie chases the pigeons away, earning the ire of the man, even as Barbara pauses to reflect on the irony of 'the symbols of peace' grubbing for food on the dirty ground. She takes Dickie by the hand and they leave hurriedly.