Ali Ahmed

03-06-2016

ENG 1121 – D465

Textual Analysis Essay Final Draft

                                                        Missing People and Cities

Pam Brown once said, “Dads are most ordinary men turned by love into heroes, adventures, storytellers, and singers of songs.” One day my mom Shefali Afroz sat next to me and shared her happiest moment which was about her dad. While she was sharing her memories she couldn’t handle her emotions and broke into tears because her dad died and she was missing him. Her reaction was similar to Li-young Lee in the poem, “I Ask My Mother to Sing.” In the poem Li-Young Lee also broke into tears and cried when both his mother and grandmother were next to him because they were missing Lee’s dad and China. Their singing made him think about when his father was around with the family. Lee’s poem and Shefali’s stories both shared memories about their happiest moment, their sadness about losing someone, and missing their parent’s city.

The happiest moment of Shefali’s life was when she spent time with her dad as a girl. In Lee’s poem, the happiest moment is about remembering their father playing the accordion in China. When family is around, the joy of being with them sometimes cannot be expressed by words. Lee said, “If my father were alive, he would play His accordion and swing like a boat.” He remembers the time when his father was with them and played his instruments while his mother sang. People all have memories and they can be very special because memories that can make people happy and feel very complete. Flashing back and thinking about each moment can bring tears to a person’s eyes. He mentions that, “I’ve never been in Peking, or the Summer Palace”. Lee really wanted to go back to those places in China that he never went to. He also mentions that he never, “stood on the great Stone Boat to watch the rain begin on Kuen Ming Lake, [or saw] the picnickers running away in the grass.” Lee wishes he could have been to all this places where once his parents lived or visited. Even though he lives in the USA, his memories are about China. For Shefali, she often talks about her dad during the holidays like on both Eids. At dinner when she was eating with her family, she would remember the time she had with her dad eating meals and going to places like Dhaka. Shefali was connecting her dad with famous places she went to. Shefali mentions that, “I been to a lot of famous places, like Lalbagh Fort and Ahsan Manzil. It’s all because of my dad.” Shefali remembers the famous places which connected to her dad, just like Lee’s family remember the famous places which connected to their dad.

Memories of sadness are difficult emotionally, and Shefali’s saddest moment was when her dad died five years ago. Her dad Korban Ali died in his house in Noakhali. She was there with him then but now she said it’s not important to go back to Bangladesh ever. She said, “Without my dad these places are not important to visit.” In Lee’s poem, his saddest moment was also about missing his father. We go through tough times which are sad and hurt us. In the poem Lee mentions that, “Both women have begun to cry. But neither stops her song.” When someone sings while crying there must be a sadness. His mother and grandmother were crying because their father was not there. Lee’s father probably died because of disease, but this isn’t mentioned. When someone is lost from a family, it hurts so badly. Some people can not hold it, and they burst into tears. Pain is something which goes through people’s lives. His mother sings with tears because she misses her husband so much. Emotions are very hard to control when they remind you of someone. In the poem Lee said, “If my father were alive.” Even though Lee lived with his mother and grandmother, there must be someone special who was his dad, and his dad was not here anymore. Lee mentions that, “She begins, and my grandmother joins her. Mother and daughter sing like young girls.” Lee was surrounded by his mother and grandmother singing, emotionally started to show how much they missed Lee’s father and started tearing.

The place Shefali was missing the most Noakhali where she was born and where her father died. The spot she most misses was Maijdi Jamwa Masjid which was a Mosque she used to go with her dad. It is the biggest and most beautiful Mosque in the city which has different colors, glass all around and it looks like the Taj Mahal. In Lee’s poem, even though Lee was never in China, he wanted to go places that his dad connected to. He mentions that, “I’ve never been in Peking, or the summer Palace, not stood on the great Stone Boat to watch the rain begin on Kuen Ming Lake, the picnickers running away in the grass.” He heard about these places that his mother and grandmother always talked about which are connected to his dad. In the poem Lee said, “But I love to hear it sung.” He likes to hear about places that were connected to his dad through songs. He feels so special even though he never been there, it’s just a feeling about something he carries in his blood which is his chinese background. Lee also said, “how the waterlilies fill with rain until they overturn, spilling water into water, then rock back, and fill with more.” It’s shows the imagery of Lee thinking about places he heard from his family.

Lee’s poem and Shefali’s stories about the happiest moment they had, miss the people they had in their life and places too. People should cherish every second of it because every moment in life is different. When people have a great time it becomes a happy memory and when people lose someone it becomes a sad memory. Everyone have to die one day, however people shouldn’t get upset when they lose someone from the family. They should make themself busy with making happy memories and forget what happened in the past.