The poem "hay un lugar" demonstrates the circularity of its subject--life--through its formal structure and lyricism. The first stanza of the poem begins with the words "Hay un lugar" ("There is a place"). The poet then goes on to describe this place. In doing so, she uses language that illustrates the circular nature of life. For example, she says: "There is a place where supper tables feel the pulse of human hands and breathe it back to them, with blessings, respecting life and death and age . . . There is a place where early morn adobe walls retain the day's high sun and spread its warmth so kindly through the night." These lines demonstrate the poet's belief that life repeats itself in significantly circular yet decidedly progressive stages.
The progressivity of life is illustrated in the poem's structure. It begins and ends with lines in Spanish, the only time the poet speaks in Spanish. However, the first line of the poem, "Hay un lugar," becomes the second to last line of the poem. The last line of the poem--"donde hay un lugar para ti" ("where there is a place for you") illustrates the poet's belief that the circular and culturally-determined nature of life creates a place for each individual. She demonstrates this belief in the poem after establishing that this place is created by the life of a culture. She says: "and each plate is prepared and carved to fit the tastes for that one mouth whose sounds are known so well and warmth is added from the hands that love."
In "in the wash," the poet uses the metaphor of blood-stained laundry to illustrate the emotional damage men can cause women in relationships. Even though the poet only specifically describes a spot of blood on the man's white linen suit, the metaphor of blood in reference to male-female relationships also necessarily brings to mind menstrual blood and the blood and pain associated with child-bearing. Thus, the use of the metaphor is intende...