English

Adalynn Mason

10 June, 06:02

The woman on the far side of the desk looks at the floor,

Her head full of Ireland

and the potatoes that blackened and curled and rotted away.

We grew only sadness there

She wants to say.

But this she whispers instead:

"I have come to work as a chambermaid

And the Important Person stamps her papers without hearing the rest.

"To scrub floors and wash linens until my hands are red and raw,

and I have polished happiness for my child

So she can become a teacher

with hands the color of cream.

Which excerpt from the poem best supports the overall theme?

And the Important Person stamps her papers without hearing the rest.

and the potatoes that blackened and curled and rotted away.

So she can become a teacher / with hands the color of cream.

The woman on the far side of the desk looks at the floor