Summary of chapter my Mother até …

The poet, Kamala Das, is on her way to the airport at Cochin, accompanied by her old mother. Suddenly, she realises that her mother has grown old. Her face appears ashen-weak like that of a corpse. This thought disturbs her as it makes her realise the fact of her mother’s approaching death. As a daughter, the thought of losing her mother disturbs her and in order to drive away from her worrying thoughts, she starts looking out at the trees which appears to be sprinting as they move ahead. She also sees young children rushing out of their homes to play outside. This reminds her of youth and beauty. On the contrary, her mother is aging. She has become old and is moving towards death. This fills her with a feeling of insecurity. In contrast to the young children and green trees, the mother has lost her youth and charm and has become pale like the winter’s moon. The poet feels the same old pain and fear of her childhood as she bids goodbye to her mother at the airport, but she hides all such emotions with a smile which consoles her mother that she would return soon. So even when the poet herself is full of fear of old age, her smile gives her mother the hope of survival. Hope It Helps You?