Aztec
Aztec - meaning Summary
Farewell and Memory Across Time
The speaker addresses a person of Aztec descent, recalling their copper-colored arms, faded adornments and a ring scar. Images of parting—tears, a path west, a home-going—suggest migration, loss and separation. The speaker remembers the addressee with affection and urges a return before time changes things further. The poem compresses nostalgia and the ache of absence into brief, image-driven lines that mix personal memory with cultural reference.
Read Complete AnalysesYou came from the Aztecs With a copper on your fore-arms Tawnier than a sunset Saying good-by to an even river. And I said, you remember, Those fore-arms of yours Were finer than bronzes And you were glad. It was tears And a path west and a home-going when I asked Why there were scars of worn gold Where a man's ring was fixed once On your third finger. And I call you To come back before the days are longer.
Feel free to be first to leave comment.