Turning Away to the Trees and the Children

Unable to bear the painful thought, the poet consciously shifts her gaze away from her mother and looks outside the moving car. Here the mood changes. She sees young trees that appear to be sprinting or racing past — an illusion created by the speed of the car — and she sees happy children rushing out of their homes to play. These are deliberately chosen images of vitality, movement and youth. The poet uses them almost as a distraction, a way of escaping the grim picture inside the car by filling her eyes with the liveliness of the world outside. …