“Who / The month of flowering’s finished. The fruit’s in,”

The poem begins with a question (“Who”) and immediately sets the scene by mentioning the end of the flowering season and the presence of fruit, suggesting the passage of time and the transition from one season to another.

“Eaten or rotten. I am all mouth.”

The speaker reflects on the fate of the fruit, whether it has been consumed or has decayed. The phrase “I am all mouth” may suggest a sense of emptiness or hunger.

“October’s the month for storage.”

October is portrayed as a month for storing things, perhaps hinting at the onset of colder weather and the need to prepare for winter.

“This shed’s fusty as a mummy’s stomach:”

The speaker describes the shed as having a musty smell, comparing it to the stale odor of a mummy’s stomach, invoking a sense of decay and abandonment.

“Old tools, handles and rusty tusks.”

Inside the shed, there are old tools, handles, and rusty tusks, indicating neglect and disuse.

“I am at home here among the dead heads.”

Despite the decay and neglect, the speaker feels a sense of belonging among the forgotten objects in the shed.

“Let me sit in a flowerpot,”

The speaker expresses a desire to sit in a flowerpot, perhaps seeking refuge or escape from her surroundings.

“The spiders won’t notice.”

The speaker suggests that she would go unnoticed by spiders if she were to sit in a flowerpot, highlighting a desire for anonymity or invisibility.

“My heart is a stopped geranium.”

The speaker compares her heart to a geranium that has stopped blooming, conveying a sense of stillness or stagnation.

“If only the wind would leave my lungs alone.”

The speaker expresses a desire for relief from the wind’s intrusion into her being, possibly symbolizing external pressures or disturbances.

“Dogsbody noses the petals. They bloom upside down.”

The imagery of a dogsbody (a low-ranking worker) sniffing the petals and flowers blooming upside down adds a surreal and unsettling element to the scene.

“They rattle like hydrangea bushes.”

The flowers are described as rattling, evoking a sense of discord or disturbance.

“Mouldering heads console me,”

The speaker finds solace in the presence of mouldering heads, suggesting a comfort in decay or mortality.

“Nailed to the rafters yesterday:”

The heads are described as being recently nailed to the rafters, emphasizing their freshness and immediacy.

“Inmates who don’t hibernate.”

The heads are likened to inmates who do not hibernate, implying a sense of captivity or stagnation.

“Cabbageheads: wormy purple, silver-glaze,”

The speaker describes cabbageheads with vivid imagery, including wormy purple color and a silver glaze, highlighting their decay and unattractiveness.

“A dressing of mule ears, mothy pelts, but green-hearted,”

The cabbageheads are further described with unconventional materials, suggesting a sense of decay and disarray.

“Their veins white as porkfat.”

The speaker describes the veins of the cabbageheads as being white like porkfat, adding to the unsettling imagery.

“O the beauty of usage!”

This line reflects on the beauty found in the ordinary or utilitarian aspects of life, even amidst decay and neglect.

“The orange pumpkins have no eyes.”

The speaker observes that the pumpkins lack eyes, suggesting a sense of vacancy or emptiness.

“These halls are full of women who think they are birds.”

The speaker describes the environment as being populated by women who believe themselves to be birds, adding to the surreal and disorienting atmosphere of the poem.

“This is a dull school.”

The speaker comments on the dullness of her surroundings, possibly referring to a metaphorical or literal school environment.

“I am a root, a stone, an owl pellet,”

The speaker describes herself as being like a root, a stone, or an owl pellet, emphasizing a sense of immobility or insignificance.

“Without dreams of any sort.”

The speaker feels devoid of dreams or aspirations, highlighting a sense of hopelessness or resignation.

“Mother, you are the one mouth”

The speaker addresses her mother, expressing a desire to be consumed or enveloped by her, perhaps seeking comfort or solace.

“I would be a tongue to. Mother of otherness”

The speaker expresses a desire to be connected to her mother, even if only as a tongue, highlighting a longing for intimacy and understanding.

“Eat me. Wastebasket gaper, shadow of doorways.”

The speaker offers herself up to her mother, using imagery of waste and shadows to convey a sense of emptiness or despair.

“I said: I must remember this, being small.”

The speaker recalls a memory from childhood, emphasizing the importance of remembering even the smallest moments of life.

“There were such enormous flowers,”

The speaker reminisces about the presence of enormous flowers in her past, highlighting the contrast between past beauty and present decay.

“Purple and red mouths, utterly lovely.”

The flowers are described as having purple and red mouths, evoking a sense of beauty and vitality.

“The hoops of blackberry stems made me cry.”

The speaker reflects on how the hoops of blackberry stems once moved her to tears, suggesting a poignant emotional connection to nature.

“Now they light me up like an electric bulb.”

The speaker finds that the blackberry stems now illuminate her, possibly symbolizing a newfound clarity or understanding.

“For weeks I can remember nothing at all.”

The poem ends with the speaker admitting to a period of forgetfulness, suggesting a state of confusion or disorientation.