Elijah Leak

 For My Mother in Her Mid-90s by Ama Ata Aidoo
(read on poetyfoundation.org)

(acquired through google images)

About the Author

      According to Wikipedia, Ama Ata Aidoo was born in Salt pond, Ghana in the year 1942, and would go on to become a poet, playwright, and academic. In addition to her literary works, Aidoo acted as an educator--teaching in countries like the U.S, Britain, Germany, and Zimbabwe.

Reasoning for using the chosen picture

       The poem's subject is related to maternity, so I thought the best picture to accompany the analysis would be a depiction of a black mother over her child. The poem talks about the appreciation the author has for the presence of her mother.

Poem analysis 

        Aidoo acts as the speaker of the poem, spending it's entirety expressing her love for her mother despite the direct biological connection( the maternal figure is her aunt). The poem lacks any real rhyme scheme, and primarily makes use of diction. Many lines include some form of interruption, which gives the poem a somewhat choppy and conversational feel. Two examples of this are the lines," Aunt, I thank you for being alive today, alert, crisp.", and " Since we don't know tomorrow, see me touching wood, clutching at timbers, hugging forests...". The poem has an appreciative tone that is evident from the first to the last stanza. The most important effect of the tone is that it contributes to the theme. The theme of the poem is that a positive relationship can come of a mother and daughter regardless of a direct biological connection.