Question

1. In A Handful of Fog (pg. 131), Lakshmi describes her difficulty recalling memories of

home. She says "trying to remember is like trying to clutch a handful of fog. Trying to forget is
like trying to hold back the monsoon," meaning

Answer 1

That trying to remember is difficult and elusive, like trying to hold onto something intangible and ephemeral like fog. On the other hand, trying to forget is overwhelming and impossible to control, like trying to stop the monsoon, which is a powerful and destructive natural phenomenon. Essentially, Lakshmi is expressing the difficulty of both remembering and forgetting, and the idea that both can be frustrating and overwhelming experiences.