Grace Nichols

"Epilogue"

I have crossed an ocean

I have lost my tongue

from the root of the old one

a new one has sprung.

Analysis

Anyone that has experienced any hardships or resistance in life can relate to this poem. In my opinion, everyone goes through a trial of some sort. Some instance or problem or event that changes them as a person and is extremely hard to handle at the time. Even though this poem doesn’t talk about the specific instance in her situation, it talks about the process. She goes through her trial, struggles with it at the time and possibly falls some, but then stands back up stronger than ever. So much media revolves around this concept, so many songs and movies and books revolve around someone’s trial. Arguably, every piece of media comes across this. A character is okay and then something not great happens, there’s a conflict, and then a resolution at the end where they’ve grown as a result of the problem or resistance. I like how this poem is open to interpretation on what she goes through though. She talks about losing her tongue as a result of her event. This could be feeling like she is losing her culture, perhaps from assimilation, it could be from being forced to conform and not speak her mind, or it could be something entirely different. In any case, I enjoy how she uses the phrase “from the root of the old one” to add a layer of building on her past and what makes her an individual to her self-discovery. Based on past convictions, she is now able to build up her confidence and start anew as a person that she actually wants to be. Naturally, I related to this, as I’m sure many people do. I was a normal child, a stop-and-smell-the-roses kind of kid that was just happy to be. Then something happened when I was about 10 that changed me. I struggled for years. Arguably until the end of 2023 or the beginning of 2024 - when I was 19. But I have finally come to a point of getting past everything and building on who I was before. Gaining back my happy exterior and glass half full personality that I lost. My new tongue developed from the root of my old one and is even stronger. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” to quote Kelly Clarkson.