The way my mother speaks

• I say her phrases to myself

  Opening suggests she is missing her

  mother/needscomforted/seeks familiarity. ‘I’ ‘Her’ ‘Myself’ and ‘My’ suggests close bond with Mother
• In my head

  Despite the fact she feels alone; she can almost hear her mother’s voice.
• Under the shallows of my breath

  She is anxious and voices her mother’s phrases out loud to calm

  herself down.
• Restful

  Word choice of restful suggests she

  derives some comfort from the phrases
• Shapes moving

  Suggests feelings of confusion/

  disorientation/distance from what

  is familiar.
• The day an ever

  Italics show she’s repeating her

  mother’s words like a mantra- shows a desire to recapture the comfort of childhood through her mother’s exact words.
• The day and ever

  Repetition of last sentences is a

  reference to the rhythm of the train - suggests lack of control or

  inevitability of change. Word choice of ‘ever’ means this change is permanent
• The train this slow evening

  Suggests the journey is dragging, taking too long
• Goes down England

  The speaker is lost in a foreign land/descending into the unfamiliar and unknown.
• Browsing

  Word choice browsing suggest searching.
• For the right sky

  Dissatisfaction with what is seen, a desire to find something better. Desire for the best fit.
• Too blue

  Too blue – nostalgic for her memories
• Swapped

  Swapped suggests giving up

  something desirable aka blue sky to

  grey sky. Shows an unwelcome change a move to something less positive.
• Cool grey

  Colour suggests dull, cold, impersonal. Grey is miserable/cold/lack of vibrancy. Mirrors her mood
• For miles

  Suggests journey has been long and tedious
• I have been saying

  Suggests she has been repeating over and over again to counter

  her anxiety.
• What like is it

   Repetition of phrase suggests clinging to the past/anxiety

  /uncertainty. Italics show it is

  a phrase from
• The way I say things when I think.

  The speaker seeks comfort from Scottish language
• Nothing is slilent. Nothing is not silent.

  Suggests confusion of speaker

  about leaving home. Highlights a

  contradiction; she is completely

  unsure of her thoughts
• I am happy and sad

  The narrator is experiencing conflicting emotions : happy at new

  life ahead, but sad at leaving behind

  the security and protection represented by her mother.
• Like a child

  Suggests a state of innocence she

  knows she longer has.
• at the end of summer

  Suggests the change from warmth of summer to a period of decay
• dipped a net

  This suggests a tentative action to

  explore something new, despite

  being unsure of the outcome.
• In a green

  Word choice hints at naivety/lack Of experience
• Erotic pond

  Suggests fertility/new life , hints at exciting and unexplored things to discover. Contrasts ideas of childhood innocence and adult sexuality.
• The day and ever. The day and ever.

  Suggests that despite the new life ahead she still needs to cling to the reassurance of her mothers speach. Italics show mothers words, repeating highlighting how the speaker repeats like a mantra to ease anxiety
• Homesick

  Word choice showing she is lonely/she misses the warmth of home and those she loves. Contrast

  of ‘homesick’ and ‘free’ shows mixed emotions of sadness and hope
• Free

  The narrator has control over her own life and is comfortable with her identity yet manages to embrace her past while moving on with her life.
• In love with the way my mother speaks

  Nostalgic/reflects on how much she finds comfort in and deeply admires her mother’s language