Sometimes the most complicated things only resolve themselves with time. An example of this is how complicated the transition from childhood to adulthood is. The short story "Marigolds" by Eugenia W. Collier reveals this transition and its complications that teenagers face. Use flashbacks to express the character's insecurities and unsatisfactory things, as we grow up we start to separate from our family little by little until we no longer have contact with their family, and as we realize that they don't live in a world fantastic where everything is perfect as they mature. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Collier uses flashbacks effectively in his short story to express someone's insecurities as they begin to mature and how they are not easily satisfied. An example of this is when the antagonist has a flashback about marigolds and explains that when the thought of marigolds crosses her mind, a strange nostalgia accompanies it and remains (214). He does this to show how once you start to mature you look back at what you have done and regret your actions. Lorde uses this in her poem and shows how the character regrets having what she has and how she wishes she wasn't who she is. What Collier is trying to say is that when we are young and not yet mature we do not see the danger and evil in the actions we do and when we look back at them as we mature we recognize that what we did was wrong. Furthermore, Collier shows how the antagonist was not all that satisfied with what he had and how he lived (215). This shows the reader that once you start to mature you start to be more judgmental and are not satisfied with yourself and what you have around you. Lorde also does this in her poem to inform the reader of the insecurities and thoughts of teenagers once they begin to mature. The flashbacks in Collier's story express many things, such as the characters' insecurities and how difficult it is for them to be satisfied. Collier explains that as we mature, we begin to separate from family little by little. Lizabet explains that every day the same routine occurs, her father goes to look for work, her mother goes to work, she didn't see her brothers because they weren't there (215). This sentence says that Lizabeth is rarely with her family. Pat Mora does the same thing in his poem “Teenagers,” when he says, “One day they disappear into their roms. Doors and lips close and we become strangers in our own home.” Mora explains how her family wasn't close and always did their own thing. When she says they become strangers to their own home it means they don't really communicate throughout the house similar to Lizabeth's life. Additionally, Lizabeth states that her closest family was her brother (215). This also shows how you separate from your family as you mature. Collier points out to the reader that Lizabeth is not close to her family and when she says that her brother is her closest family this means that her parents are rarely there to support her which makes the reader feel not only bad for Lizabeth but also for him. it can make the reader feel grateful to have a family with them at all times. This phrase reminds me of Mora's poem when he states: "I walk around the room, listening to whispers, a code I knew but can't remember spoken by the mouths I taught to speak." Mora I'm saying is so disconnected from her family that metaphorically they don't understand each other when they try to communicate, so there's no point in communicating. As we can read, Collier expresses how far we distance ourselves from family.