Mementos, 1

The photograph of the speaker’s former wife is the poem’s central symbol. The rediscovery of the photo provides a kind of framing device for flashbacks that dominate most of the poem and ties together all of its thematic preoccupations. The speaker describes how he found the photo among commonplace items, such as “canceled checks, old clippings” (Line 2) as well as other mementos like “yellow note cards / That meant something once” (Lines 2-3). The speaker’s use of the phrase “[t]hat meant something once” in relation to the note cards suggests that not all mementos retain their emotional power with the passage of time. The photograph, however, has indeed maintained its power: “I happened to find / Your Picture. That picture. I stopped there cold” (Lines 3-4). The specificity of the speaker’s phrasing, “That picture” emphasizes that it is no ordinary photo, and the memories and feelings it represents have played an important role in the speaker’s life. As the speaker continues to elaborate on the photo’s significance in the ensuing stanzas—the fact it is of his former wife, the way it functioned as a memento in a very different way during the war as opposed to now, its status as a reminder of lost youth and love—it becomes more and more clear why “That picture” is something he continues to keep.