Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Naomi Shihab Nye’s "Steps" is a quiet yet powerful meditation on language, cultural adaptation, and the unseen futures carried within children. The poem juxtaposes the old and the new, tradition and transformation, through the image of a bilingual grocery sign and the children who move through the world shaped by both histories. Using delicate imagery and subtle motion, Nye captures the fluidity of cultural identity, the imprint of small daily acts, and the potential of the next generation to carry forward their heritage.

The poem opens with a seemingly simple act: "A man letters the sign for his grocery in Arabic and English." This bilingual inscription immediately establishes the poem’s central tension—the coexistence of cultures, the attempt to bridge two worlds through language. The act of lettering is significant: it is an assertion of presence, a marker of identity in a foreign place. The grocery is more than a store; it is a gathering space, a signifier of community, a place where language itself exists as both memory and adaptation.

The next line introduces a curious observation: "Paint dries more quickly in English." This small detail, seemingly incidental, is deeply symbolic. The "thick swoops and curls of Arabic letters stay moist / and glistening till tomorrow." The physical characteristics of Arabic script—its curves and flourishes—suggest something slower, something that lingers. Arabic, rich with history, carries a certain weight, a permanence that resists the quick efficiency of English. In contrast, English, with its more compact and rigid form, dries quickly, as if assimilating faster into its surroundings. This observation subtly hints at the immigrant experience—how English, as the dominant language, is absorbed and accepted more swiftly, while Arabic, though beautiful, takes longer to settle and is perhaps more easily erased.

The poem then shifts to the children, who "show up jingling their dimes." The sound of coins emphasizes their adaptation to the "currency of the New World." Unlike the older generation, who might still hold onto old ways, these children move between cultures effortlessly, mastering the transactions of their new home while carrying "wishes for gum and candies shaped like fish." The detail of fish-shaped candies adds a layer of meaning—fish, often associated with movement, migration, and adaptability, mirror the children’s journey between identities.

Nye deepens this metaphor: "They float through the streets, diving deep to the bottom, / nosing rich layers of crusted shell." The children, like fish, navigate this new landscape with instinct, exploring the depths of a culture that is still forming around them. The "crusted shell" suggests remnants of the old world beneath the surface, the unseen foundation upon which their lives are being built.

A quiet shift occurs when the poem introduces a future storyteller: "One of these children will tell a story that keeps her people alive. / We don’t know yet which one she is." This moment acknowledges the weight of cultural preservation—someone among them will be the one to carry forward history, language, and memory. The uncertainty of "We don’t know yet which one she is." underscores the unpredictable nature of legacy. It could be the "girl in the red sweater dangling a book bag," or the "sister with eyes pinned to the barrel of pumpkin seeds." The contrast between these two figures—one marked by education and movement, the other by focused attention on a simple, tangible object—suggests that cultural inheritance takes many forms. It can be carried in books, in learning, in active storytelling, or in the small rituals of daily life, like choosing food that echoes a homeland.

The poem then returns to motion: "They are lettering the sidewalk with their steps." This beautiful image likens the children’s movements to writing—they are unconsciously leaving their mark, inscribing themselves into this place, just as the shopkeeper did with his bilingual sign. Yet their mark is transient, just footprints, reinforcing the idea that identity is something in motion, evolving rather than fixed.

A subtle tension follows: "They are separate and together and a little bit late." The children exist between two states—both unified and distinct, part of a collective experience yet still individuals. The phrase "a little bit late" could be literal, but it also suggests the slow process of cultural adaptation. They are arriving, but always just behind something—perhaps behind their parents’ expectations, or behind the rapid shifts of a world that does not pause for immigrants to catch up.

The final lines of the poem settle into a dreamlike rhythm: "Carrying a creased note, 'Don’t forget.' / Who wrote it? They’ve already forgotten." This small detail captures the fleeting nature of childhood memory. Someone—a parent, a teacher, a sibling—has given them a note, a reminder. Yet the instruction to "Don’t forget" is already dissolving. This moment reflects the delicate balance between remembering and assimilating, between holding onto the past and moving forward into the future.

The poem closes with an image of joy and endurance: "A purple fish sticks to the back of the throat. / Their long laughs are boats they will ride and ride, / making the shadows that cross each other’s smiles." The "purple fish" could symbolize a lingering taste of childhood, of home, of something both sweet and slightly uncomfortable—something not easily swallowed. The laughter of the children becomes a form of transport, something that carries them forward through time and space. The phrase "making the shadows that cross each other’s smiles" suggests the overlapping of lives, of histories interwoven through generations, of identity always in flux.

"Steps" is a tender, understated meditation on the immigrant experience, the passage of time, and the small ways identity is inscribed into the world. Naomi Shihab Nye masterfully weaves together language, movement, and memory, showing how children unconsciously shape the cultural landscape even as they are shaped by it. The poem leaves us with an image of resilience—children moving forward, laughing, carrying traces of their heritage with them, whether they realize it or not.

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