Character Analysis
Strong is Abyssinia's dad and Patience's husband, and for a while, he's a key part of Abby's happy childhood. The owner of the Better Way Barbershop in town, Strong is a welcome presence in both his daughter and the community's lives:
What Abby likes best about her father was his sense of humor. He even laughed and poked fun at himself. The men came from miles away to get their hair trimmed and to listen to the stories that fell from the mouth of the barber.
[…]
The Better Way Barbershop was an institution on the black side of Ponca City. (5.10-12)
Seems like a pretty solid guy, right? He's a doting dad, a central community figure, and he has a sense of humor about himself. Sure, his eye might stray from time to time, but he's nothing Patience can't handle, and generally, life in the Jackson household is pretty good.
Until the tornado comes along, gobbles up the Better Way Barbershop, and leaves Strong a shell of his former self:
"I saw him, but you see, he wasn't himself. I talked to him, but he wasn't listening. Then I just sat with him all night, not saying anything."
"Where was he?" Abby asked.
"Sitting where the barbershop used to be."
"Can I go see him?"
"It wouldn't do any good." Her mother started pacing the floor.
"Please?"
"Oh, Abby." A new wave of sobs overtook her. "I couldn't get him to come home!" Her shoulder drooped. Defeated, she sank into one of the chairs by the kitchen table. (7.84-90)
When the tornado destroys the barbershop, it breaks something inside of Strong. He falls apart and leaves town without a word, and it isn't until years later that he returns. When he does, though, he does so in full force, rescuing Abby from Trembling Sally's efforts to drown her. Strong, if you will, has his strength back—though he's never quite the same again:
Soon she knew he would rebuild his barbershop. But it would not be the same. Just as each flame that flickered changed, he had changed. Life would be different. A kaleidoscope of ever changing patterns. (18.37)
Whatever snapped in Strong when the tornado hit has permanently altered him. Still, like Abby, he digs deep and taps into resilience, eventually bringing himself home and mending his family.