What is The White Porch by Cathy Song about?

Answer 1

Cathy Song has written a collection of poems, relating directly back to her childhood and raising as a Hawaiian American. In her writing of The White Porch specifically, Song brings the reader back to the moment that she realizes that she is no longer a child. The poem takes place on her front porch (hence the title), where she sits after just washing her hair. She's thinking about how annoying it is that her hair takes half the day to dry, but also about how her hair is a symbolism of her feminine side. She's remembering back to when her mother used to play with her hair and it would get caught in her wedding band. Now, as a grown woman, she still keeps her hair long and beautiful for her husband. Her entire day is revolving around taking care of her husband (snapping beans for dinner, having cake baking in the oven, laundry hanging in the sun). Though this may seem like a negative look on a woman's life, Song embraces her role as a woman and describes her hair as "My hair, freshly washed/like a measure of wealth,/like a bridal veil." It's a beautiful poem, indeed.