Question

During the picking season my grandmother would get out of bed at four o'clock ... and creak down to her knees and chant in a sleep-filled voice, "Our Father, thank you for letting me see this New Day. Thank you that you didn't allow the bed I lay on last night to be my cooling board, nor my blanket my winding sheet." In this excerpt use context clues to identify what comparison Angelou is making with the metaphors of bed as cooling board and blanket as winding sheet.

Answer 1

Answer: Burial Preparations after death

Explanation: When Angelou's grandmother compares her bed to her "cooling board", she is referring to the board dead bodies are put on while they cool off. When she makes the comparison of her blankets to her "winding sheet", she is referring to the sheet that is pulled on top of bodies when deceased.

Hope this helps!