INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN

Papaya Tree (page 8-9)

The papaya tree is a symbol of growth and life. Throughout the poem, the narrator describes
her brothers who are growing and can see the tree even higher than before: “Four years
older, he can see higher”. This is telling us that she is optimistic for the future: “he can see
higher” is a symbol of the future, that the narrator is talking about in a positive and hopeful
tone. She is admiring her tree and vows to protect it or be the first to see it in the morning.
She is unconscious of everything that is happening around her and the mood evoked is hope
or joyfulness for the future rather than war or despair. The whole poem is a metaphor of
hope and positivity.
A tree has roots that grow into the soil and help to stabilize the tree. In this context, the
narrator has stabilized herself in this enjoyable life, not taking count of the war or the misery
that her country is facing.

Birthday Wishes (page 30-31)

On the contrary to the poem about the narrator’s papaya tree, this poem evokes the hard
times she is living. The narrator is talking about all her wishes that she keeps to herself, such
as wishing to let her hair grow, wishing she could lose her chubby cheeks or even wishing
she could stay calm. These are all small wishes that seem useless and slightly naïf but are a
symbol of the small things that bother her and that she hopes she can get. Later in the
poem, the girl wishes for stronger and bigger things that help readers understand how life is
tough, sad, and how one can feel lonely when their country is at war. For example, she
wishes for a sister to play with and hug for warmth in the middle of the night. This
symbolizes her boredom and loneliness. Furthermore, the narrator evokes her wish to see
her father to stop herself from daydreaming that he will come back from the war, or even to
stop her mother feeling sad and worried. This wish is a symbol of war’s destruction and how
a big conflict can destroy families and cause so much harm to a family like this one. A wish is
a strong desire or hope for something that cannot or possibly will not happen. Therefore, we
can suggest that all the narrator’s wishes seem impossible for her, meaning that she won’t
be able to let her hair grow, loose her chubby cheeks, have a sister to play with and hug for
warmth in the middle of the night but most importantly, she won’t see her father appear in
his white navy uniform and extend his hand to embrace her.
As 12–13-year-old readers and the narrator being around our age, we feel closer to the
character and understand her feelings. Can you possibly imagine being separated from a
member of your family due to war?

One Mat Each (page 63-64)

Like the previous poem, this is an example of a poem whose topic is Seeking for safety. This
girl and her family are fleeing their country to escape all the conflict, sadness, and war.
Arrived on the boat, they lie side by side on two straw mats. The phrase “enough for us five
to lie down” has a strong significance in this poem and mean several things.
Firstly, we could suggest that this is a symbol of despair and hopelessness because a family
of five is lying down in a small place. Furthermore, they are lying down, and not standing up,
which could also symbolize how they feel inferior and lowly. However, they are altogether
 INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN

experiencing this misery and suggests that they will face the challenges as a family, no
matter how they might feel.
Later, the family only has one mat for them to huddle together. These mats could be a
symbol of their lives that they are holding on, this life where they have to say goodbye to
their father who has gone to war, this life where they must flee the country by boat, this life
that is unfair.
The boat is full, crammed with bodies, upper and lower deck however the narrator says that
no one is heartless enough to say stop because what if they had been stopped before their
turn? This describes everyone’s desperation and their great want to flee this country at war.
Therefore, the tone of this poem is anger, sorrow and desperateness.