THE PHOTOGRAPH

SUMMARY
The poet looks at the photograph of her mother, which
was taken when her mother was 12 years old. The mother
had gone for a sea holiday with her cousins Betty and
Dolly and while they were paddling, her uncle took a
photograph of them.
Each of the cousins was holding the hands of the poets
mother who was the eldest among them. All three of
them stood smiling through their hair while the photo
was taken. Her mother had a sweet face. All this
happened before she was born.
Years fled past. Her mother grew up into an adult. They
all underwent changes, while the sea stood still and
seemed unaltered despite the passage of time. After about
twenty or thirty years, the poets mother would look at
the photograph, laughing nostalgically and remembering
the past.
She would comment on the dress worn by her cousins
Betty and Dolly and herself. The sea holiday belonged to
the past of her mother and the poet still remembers how
her mother would laugh looking at the snapshot.
The smile Shirley Toulsons mother had on her face
when she thought of her past (the sea holiday) and
Shirleys thoughts when she recalls her mothers
laughter, both, seem to be wry i.e. filled with dry or sad
amusement for a time that was happier but cannot be re-

lived.
For the poet, both these (the photograph and her
memories of her mother) bring great sadness and an
acute sense of loss. However, time has been a healer of
sorts. Although the sense of loss that may never go away
completely, with time, she has come to accept this
eventuality of life.
She has been able to come to terms with her mothers
demise. Her mother died about 12 years ago and now, the
poetess has nothing to say about this circumstance. It
leaves her sad and yet at ease. It leaves her in pain, but
with acceptance. The photograph is silent and leaves her
silent as well.
The three stanzas depict three different phases. The first
stanza refers to the childhood of the poets mother. The
second stanza refers to the poets childhood when her
mother was an adult. The last stanza refers to the poets
adulthood when she is not with her mother.