Answer:
The story's opening operates on a contrast. At the same time that it introduces the reader to Jonathan’s constructive outlook, it obliquely references the extent of the war's devastation.
Jonathan not only considers himself lucky, but has an almost dazed optimism in his manner and attitude. Everywhere he looks, he sees not cause for mourning but rather opportunity and fortune. Consider when he returns home to Enugu. Instead of lamenting the devastation of his hometown, he celebrates his own little victory and gets to work.