No Madonna and Child could touch Her tenderness for a son She soon would have to forget. . . . The air was heavy with odors of diarrhea, Of unwashed children with washed-out ribs And dried-up bottoms waddling in labored steps Behind blown-empty bellies. Other mothers there Had long ceased to care, but not this one: She held a ghost-smile between her teeth, And in her eyes the memory Of a mother’s pride. . . . She had bathed him And rubbed him down with bare palms. She took from their bundle of possessions A broken comb and combed The rust-colored hair left on his skull And then—humming in her eyes—began carefully to part it. In their former life this was perhaps A little daily act of no consequence Before his breakfast and school; now she did it Like putting flowers on a tiny grave.   
O escritor nigeriano Chinua Achebe traz uma reflexão sobre a situação dos refugiados em um cenário pós-guerra civil em seu páis. Essa reflexão é construída no poema por meio da representação de uma mãe, explorando a(s):
demonstração de orgulho por não precisar pedir doações.
descrições artísticas detalhadas de uma obra conhecida.
aceitação de um diagnóstico de doença terminal do filho.
consternação ao visitar o túmulo do filho recém-falecido.
impressões sensoriais experimentadas no ambiente.