There Is No Word for Goodbye

Comparing Mood
There Is
No Word
for Goodbye
FPO
Mary
TallMountain
Bluebells in Shakespeare’s Wood
(2004), Timmy Mallett. Acrylic.
© Timmy Mallett.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Sokoya,1 I said, looking through
the net of wrinkles into
wise black pools
of her eyes. b
13
14
15
b MOOD
Reread lines 1–4. What
feeling do you get from
the way the speaker,
or voice of the poem,
describes her aunt?
What do you say in Athabaskan
when you leave each other?
What is the word
for goodbye?
2
16
17
18
19
20
21
9
10
11
12
A shade of feeling rippled
the wind-tanned skin.
Ah, nothing, she said,
watching the river flash.
c
c
MAKE INFERENCES
What might the aunt
be experiencing in lines
9–12?
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
1. Sokoya (sE-koiPyE): word meaning “aunt on the mother’s side.”
She looked at me close.
We just say, Tlaa. That means,
See you.
We never leave each other.
When does your mouth
say goodbye to your heart? d
d MAKE INFERENCES
Reread lines 14–18. What
does the aunt mean by
the question she asks at
the end of this section?
She touched me light
as a bluebell.
You forget when you leave us,
You’re so small then.
We don’t use that word.
We always think you’re coming back,
but if you don’t,
we’ll see you some place else.
You understand.
There is no word for goodbye.
e
e
MOOD
Reread the poem to find
other places where the
word goodbye appears.
How does the repetition
of goodbye affect the
mood of the poem?
2. Athabaskan (BthQE-bBsPkEn): a language spoken by Native
American tribes in parts of Canada, Alaska, Oregon, and California.
498
unit 4: mood, tone, and style
there is no word for goodbye
499