The Way My Mother Speaks

• "I say her phrases to myself" - First person narrative voice
• "in my head" - Reader is immediately drawn into the speaker’s thoughts. She is repeating her mother’s words to herself, quietly under

  her breath.
• "or under the shallows of my breath," - Shallow breaths imply anxiety.

  She is perhaps repeating her mother’s words as a means of comfort.
• "restful shapes moving." - Paradox introduces the speaker’s confusion.
• "The day and ever. The day and ever." - Italics suggest this is a direct quote from her mother and the repetition mimics the rhythm of the travelling train. She finds the repetition of these words to be calming

  and soothing.
• "browsing for the right sky," - ‘Browsing’ implies that she is searching for the place she belongs.
• "too blue swapped for a cool grey." - ‘Blue sky’ has connotations of

  happiness and warmth whilst ‘grey’ has connotations of darkness and sadness. She is leaving behind a happy childhood and moving into the

  uncertainty of an independent adulthood.
• "For miles I have been saying" - ‘For miles’ emphasises the distance she has travelled. She is moving further away from her childhood

  home yet can still hear her mother’s voice in her head. Her mother is still a part of her, suggesting that no matter how far she moves she will never lose that connection.
• "Nothing is silent. Nothing is not silent." - Another contradiction!

  Sounds in their head are silent but they can hear them as if they are

  real/overwhelming. Implies that, what doesn't exist in the here and now (your memories, your past) still has a voice in your head. It still has influence.
• "I am happy and sad" - Paradox. She is experiencing contrasting emotions at the same time highlighting how confusing this move is for her. She is happy to be gaining her independence yet sad to be leaving behind her mother and childhood home.
• "like a child who stood at the end of summer and dipped a net in a green, erotic pond." - Simile, This comparison symbolises a time of

  change, growing up and moving on. A change in season and the ‘end of summer’ links back to leaving a blue sky for a grey one. ‘dipped’

  suggests a tentative approach as she moves cautiously forward whilst

  ‘pond’ implies there are new depths for her to explore. ‘Erotic’ links again to the idea of growing up and emerging sexuality.
• "I am homesick, free, in love with the way my mother speaks." - Again, a contradiction of positive and negative thoughts. These words suggest awareness, that as she moves forward she will never lose her link to the past or the bond she shares with her mother.