Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde

According to the words of the poem the persona is one I could describe as triubled and in pain. The speaker repeatedly states, "momma's in the bedroom with the door closed," which can literally mean that the mother has her door closed but figuratevely may mean that this child is neglected and shuned by her own mother. This in turn leads to the poignancy about death. It is because this person is neglected that she speaks about death and dying; "what is I die before morning" and "suppose I die before graduation." She wants to die and speaks about her life and all the things she wants to accomplish but cannot because the neglect and disarray in her life is too much to fathom. I cannot say I find myself in this poem because I have every intention on living my life, but I can say that I can relate to the neglect in a way because I 'am a middle child and I never got what I wanted.