There was once a country…I left it as a child
but my memory of it is sunlight-clear.
The opening lines of the poem establish a fantastical tone in which the speaker begins to recount her memory of her country of origin (as seen through her childhood eyes). The ellipses create a pause that indicates hesitation as the speaker gathers her thoughts. Though time has passed, the speaker’s memory of her country is clear and warm—she carries a childhood fondness for her country that will prove unshakeable.
It tastes of sunlight.
This quote refers to the speaker’s native language: when she left her country, she carried with her a “child’s vocabulary.” As an adult, this language and the heritage it represents provide the speaker with an understanding of the world and her place in it. Throughout the poem, the speaker’s conception of her country is defined by sunlight, implying warmth, light, and sight. Here, Rumens uses gustatory imagery to depict the speaker’s relationship with the country she is from.
My city hides behind me. They mutter death,
and my shadow falls as evidence of sunlight.
In the last movement of the poem, an unspecified “they” surround the speaker and her personified city. “They” could represent the inhabitants of the speaker's new place of residence. Whoever "they" are, they accuse the speaker of absence and darkness, threatening her as she stands in front of her city in a protective stance. This shows the way that the speaker attempts to shield her conception of her shining city from the outside world. No matter what discrimination the speaker faces, nothing can stop her from associating her city of origin with sunlight. Even the speaker’s own darkness, represented by her shadow, serves as evidence of the speaker’s love for her country.
