reference to the shortened hair stubble requires in the military and shows how aggressive it makes her son appear to her.
disrupting - poppies
not meant to be there - mothers hope for son disturbed by the poppy representing DEATH
play at being eskimos - poppies
personal anecdote (story) - creates a sense of intimacy and human realism in the speakers voice - juxtaposed with the military side of her son.
use of listing - poppies
implying the overflow of intense emotions - she is trying to not only hide them but avoid them and is struggling to do either as she is so upset. semantic field - ‘tucks, darts, pleats, hatless..’
