My small grandmother is tall there,

straight-back, white broderie anglaise shirt,

pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey bun,
a kind, old smile round her eyes.
Her big hand holds mine,
white hand in black hand.
Her sharp blue eyes look her own death in the eye.
It was true after all; that look.
My tall grandmother became small.
Her back round and hunched.
Her soup forgot to boil.
She went to the awful place grandmothers go.
Somewhere unknown, unthinkable.
But there she is still,
in the photo with me at three,
the crinkled smile is still living, breathing.
Stanza 1
Line
Meaning
1 My small grandmother is tall there, The persona s grandmother looks tall in th
e photograph.traight-back, white broderie anglaise shirt ,
She is standing
with good posture, wearing an embroidered lace blouse.
3 pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey bun, She wears the blouse with a pleated skir
t, non-heeled shoes and her hair in a bun.
4 a kind, old smile round her eyes.
She is smiling kindly.
5 Her big hand holds mine,
Her big hand is holding the persona s hand.
6 white hand in black hand.
The contrast of their skin colours can clearly b
e seen in their linked hands.
7 Her sharp blue eyes look her death in the eye.
Her grandmother s blue eye
s suggests that her death is near.
Stanza 2
Line
Meaning
8 It was true after all; that look.
The persona s reference of death came true
.
9 My tall grandmother became small.
The grandmother became thinner and more
fragile.
10 Her back round and hunched. Her back became hunched.
11 Her soup forgot to boil.
She became forgetful.
12 She went to the awful place grandmothers go.
Soon, she passed away.
13 Somewhere unknown, unthinkable.
Upon her death, she went to a place that
no one knows.
Stanza 3
Line
Meaning
14 But there she is still,
However, in the photograph, her grandmother will
always be alive.
15 in the photo with me at three,
The persona was there years old in the p
hotograph with her grandmother.
16 the crinkled smile is still living, breathing.
Her grandmother s smile is
still so alive and real.
Moral Value
1 We must treasure our loved ones when they are alive.
We must spend as much time as we can with our loved ones while they are still li
ving
When they pass away, all that will be left are the memories, as is illustrated i
n the poem.
2 It is difficult to lose a family member.
It is always difficult to deal with the death of a loved one.
The persona loses her grandmother when she was younger but she will always remem
ber her.
3 We must never forget the importance of family relationship.
We should not forget to love and care for our family, especially our grandparent

s who are the pillars of a family.

When they are old and sick, we must continue to take care of them.
Summary of Stanza 1
The persona is looking at an old photograph of her grandmother and herself. She
describes the photograph
her grandmother is standing tall and straight, dressed
in a white embroidered lace blouse with a pleated skirt, and flat shoes. Her gre
y hair is pulled neatly into a bun. She is smiling kindly while holding the pers
ona s hand in hers, giving her the security and comfort. As the persona describes
their linked hands
white hand in black hand
it is clear that they come from a mi
xed race family. The last line seems to suggest that the persona knows that her
grandmother s death will come soon.