Question

Forest Fires
By Sarah Kay
2010

I arrive home from JFK in the rosy hours to find a brand new five-in-one egg slicer and dicer on my dining room table.

This is how my father deals with grief.

Three days ago, I was in the Santa Cruz redwoods, tracing a mountain road in the back of a pickup truck, watching clouds unravel into spider webs.

Two days from now, there will be forest fires so thick, they will have to evacuate that part of Santa Cruz. The flames will paint the nightly news a different shade of orange and when it happens, I will already be in New York City, watching something else on TV.

Commercials, probably. Which is all that seems to play on hospital television sets. The beeping from nurse’s stations mixing with sales jingles to create the theme song of the ailing.

My grandmother’s body is a sinking ship on white sheets. I hold her hand and try to remember open highway.

“It just goes to show that in dry conditions like these, it doesn’t take much to start a fire,” a Cal Fire spokesman will tell CNN on Saturday. “Fire officials have been working tirelessly, but controlling something this big is impossible.”

My mother will point at the celluloid flames, remind me how close I was, how lucky I am, how narrowly I missed this disaster. My father will point out a commercial for the Brown and Crisp. Repeat line by line how it bakes, broils, steams, fries, and barbecues. He will write down the phone number so he can remember to order it later.

Three days ago, I was barefoot, balancing on train tracks, the full moon an unexpected visitor, the clean air as crisp and sharp as these city lungs could stand.

Two days from now, I will find my father making egg salad in the kitchen, exhausted after another all-night shift at the hospital. I will ask him if he needs help and understand when he says no. I will leave him to slice and dice the things he can.

My grandmother holds my hands and strokes my knuckles like they are a wild animal she is trying to tame. She tells me I am gorgeous. Watches a commercial. Forgets my name. Tells me I am gorgeous again.

My father watches from the bedside table. His mother and daughter strung together by tightrope hands, fingers that look like his own. And somewhere in California, a place I once stood is burning.

Note what the author says and how they say it. Do they use any particular literary devices to get their points across?

Analyze the text and draw your own conclusions about what the text means based on the clues you found in the author’s writing. (This is the subjective part. I want to know what the text means to you, according to your interpretation.)

Answer 1

It is a story narrative in TEDx motivational talks by confident people with excellent conversational skills and precision.

The author Sarah Kays is a poetess and storyteller of international fame and excellence. The author discusses important views and perspectives regarding important points and situations in life. She discusses the forest fires and its harmful impact on the environment in Santa Cruz. Further she discusses the importance and prevalence of nature like the sun shining and moon bestowing its light in the night. She emphasizes on the importance and role of mother in society in upbringing her child and building their career and fortune. She analyzes and discusses the importance of family values and virtues inculcated by parents and family members. The child should learn the importance of parents and their love and emotion towards their children. They work hard to upbring their children. She discusses the importance of women working in bright sunshine and heat to build infrastructure and architectural buildings to continue the life forward. This life is important as a child is born ,which is not born or even a marriage is also not possible for many big people in the society due to various factors and environmental stress involved. It helps the children to realize that a successful career and ambition along with love and care from wife and children is not enough for attaining happiness in life. You should also recognize the value of parents and their contributions in life.