In her poem "To a Daughter Leaving Home," Linda Pastan captures the bittersweet feelings a parent experiences as their child grows into an adult through the use of an extended metaphor. In the poem, the parent recalls teaching their eight-year-old child how to ride a bike. The parent follows alongside the child, but before long, the daughter moves too quickly for the parent to keep up. They are left watching with anxious concern as the daughter fades into the distance. As the title tells us, this poem is not only about a parent learning the difficult lesson of letting go while teaching their child how to ride a bike—it is also about a parent's bittersweet feelings upon watching their daughter grow into an adult and leave home.

Bicycle riding is an extended metaphor for the journey of life and growth. When the child is first learning how to ride a bike, the parent follows closely alongside. This represents childhood, during which the parent stays close to the child ideally providing love, guidance, and support. Once she becomes more comfortable riding a bike, the daughter pedals faster and faster until eventually her parent is unable to keep up. This parallels growth. As a result of the parent's guidance and support, the child becomes more confident and independent. They are progressively less reliant on the parent.

The helpless concern and anxiety the parent feels while watching their daughter ride off alone mirrors the simultaneous pride and heartache felt by many parents when their children reach adulthood and become less dependent on them. While the parent is proud of the confident, independent child they have raised, they are also saddened by the thought of no longer having as large a role in the child's life. This sadness is often accompanied by worry and concern. Letting go of one's child is an incredibly difficult thing to do. The parent struggles to accept that they will no longer be able to be constantly present in the child's life and protect the child from harm.

The final line of the poem is particularly emotional and meaningful. Pastan compares the daughter's wind-blown hair to a "handkerchief waving goodbye." Through the use of this simile, Pastan bridges the gap between past and present and drives home the bittersweet struggle of letting go of one's child.

Are you referring to the poem by Linda Pastan? If so, I think this is a poignant little poem. The speaker is a mother whose daughter is leaving home for the first time. The mother is remembering back when her daughter was only eight years old. The poem is a metaphor comparing a bike-riding lesson to the girl leaving home. When the mother was teaching the girl to ride her bike, she was also, in a metaphorical sense, "taking off" to go on her own. Now that she is leaving home, she is also "taking off" on her own. The mother's sadness now at her leaving is contrasted with her excitement way back when the daughter was only 8 and learned to ride the bike by just going for it. Her daughter's hair on the bike that day was waving in the breeze, like what she now imagines is a handkerchief "waving goodbye" (this is a simile).

Do you see how the poet skillfully blends her images - the bike ride, the leaving home, the daughter's hair, the handkerchief?

I am not sure what you assignment is, but if you need to write something about the theme of this poem based on your own experience, can you remember what it was like for you when you left home? You are in college, so perhaps you are attending a college away from home and can relate to how your mother felt when you left. You could compare this poem to your own experience, or perhaps write a poem of your own that reflects the same theme.

If your life experience is nothing like this bit of nostalgia, you could still use the theme, only your experience would be different. I once was reminiscing about how sad my mother was when she dropped me off at my college dorm, and my husband's experience was very different - his parents were glad to see him leave home. Sad, but still something to be used for literature.

Good luck.

"To A Daughter Leaving Home" is a very poignant, bittersweet piece of poetry.  In the poem, the parent is teaching his or her daughter how to ride a bike. The entire poem, even though it's discussing watching the daughter ride away on her bike, is an extended metaphor about life.  Someday, that daughter might ride away to college, or off to a distant land after she marries or finds a career.  The purpose of the poem is to show the pride and heartache of a parent as they watch their little one gain a little bit more independence.  The parent watches as the little girl gets smaller and smaller (and more distant from the parent), and hopes that they don't hear a resounding "thud" as the little girl hits the ground.  Isn't that what every parent does, hold their breath as they watch their children venture out into the world on their own, hoping they will fly instead of fall?  I think the theme of the poem is the sadness and pride a parent feels as their child grows up.