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Feature
Forgetting Spanish
A. Gautam
I’ve held the words on the tip of my tongue
and let them fall off, vanish into thin air.
I’d thought I’d pick them back up one day,
but now the words seem to be nowhere.
5 My grandmother said I once spoke
just the way she does, but in my baby voice.
Years have passed, I have lost my words
I can deny it, but I know I had a choice.
Once, I wanted to be cool like my friends
10 and gave up on my father’s words.
Today, I want to pick them up again.
It feels like reaching for flying birds.
Like magic, my mother always understood
what was eating me inside,
15 like an x-ray, she saw my aches
and I could no longer hide.
She said, “It’s never too late to learn again
what you already once knew.
Search within you, and seek help,
20 what you need most is You.”
The comparison to the flying birds in lines 11 and 12 contributes to the mood of—
Responses
A sorrow sorrow
B worryworry
C irritation irritation
D frustration
A sorrow sorrow
A. sorrow
To determine the mood contributed by the comparison to the flying birds in lines 11 and 12, we can analyze the context and imagery used in these lines.
In lines 10-12, the speaker expresses a desire to pick up their father's words again, comparing it to reaching for flying birds. This comparison suggests a sense of longing, freedom, and aspiration.
Given the context of the poem, where the speaker laments forgetting the Spanish language and expresses a desire to reconnect with their roots, the comparison to flying birds can be interpreted as representing a sense of elusive and untamed beauty. It conveys the idea that retrieving something lost, like words or memories, may be difficult and uncertain, akin to the fleeting nature of catching a bird in flight.
Therefore, the mood contributed by the comparison to the flying birds in lines 11 and 12 is one of hope, longing, and a touch of melancholy.
Based on this analysis, the most suitable response would be D) frustration.