All For the Sake of Love
...adds to her strenuous path to come. For example, Phoenix has to go through a barbed-wire fence in order to get to her destination. She needs to creep and crawl by “spreading her knees and stretching her fingers like a baby trying to climb the steps.” This is a difficult task especially for a woman of her age. She also needs to cross over a log that lies across the creek. This challenges Phoenix as she closes her eyes to march across. Considering the great danger she puts herself through, not any one of these obstacles stops Phoenix Jackson from her dedication to her grandson. There are mental obstacles that obstruct Phoenix journey. She experiences hallucinations as she continues her path. One example of her hallucinations is when she mistakes a scarecrow for a man dancing in the field or thought to be a ghost. As she steps closer, frightened, she realizes it is a scarecrow. She also talks to herself and to the animals of the woods. Talking to one’s self can often be seen by the older generation. “Don’t let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way”, she exclaims to all the wild animals as if they understood her situation. No matter what state she is in, her grandson is her number one motivator who she loves deeply. The social challenges that she faces are perhaps the most difficult to overcome. Phoenix Jackson faces extreme poverty during that time. This is made known when she takes a nickel that falls out of a man’s pocket she encounters along her journey. Sneaky as she is, the nickel safely slips down her apron...