” Her loud shoes in the hall. She passes through the doors and i can still hear the loud sounds of her shoes .And even when the teachers turn med toward the classrooms and I hear what must be the singing and talking of all the children in the world, i can still hear my mothers footsteps above it all.”
Edward P. Jones’ “The First Day” is centered around the relationship of the main character and her mother. Their relationship as we read in the first sentence:
“In an otherwise unremarkable September morning long before I learn to be ashamed of my mother…” ,
was never as strong as it was during and before the events of this story. The change in their relationship is brought about due to her mother refusing to join her in a game that she normally plays with her. After refusing, her mother departs and all the main character hears is her footsteps. At that moment the main character is encountered with the thought that her mother may not always be by her side.