Santiago's Dream of Lions

After the boy leaves, Santiago sleeps in his shack, which contains a bed, a table, a chair, and religious pictures of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Virgin of Cobre—relics of his deceased wife. He dreams of his youth, of the long golden beaches of Africa and the lions playing on the shore in the dusk. The lions symbolize his lost youth, strength, and undiminished spirit. He wakes before dawn, feeling confident, and goes to wake the boy for the day's fishing.