childhood memory previously described. The image of her hands that have .
accumulated "the line-etched story in scars and wrinkles" reinforces the sense of .
ageing and nostalgic tone. While the washing line has stood constant in the yard, .
changes have occurred and the carefree imagination of the child and will of the child are .
tempered by the reality: "The inclination is still there . . .but it is unlikely the .
washing line could support me this time." The adult world intrudes on her reflection .
as she realises how her life and world have changed. She must accept the .
responsibilities of adulthood as she is no longer the "curious onlooker" but creates her .
own "semaphore secrets" with her washing. She doesn't feel "the sagging wires" and .
"spotted metallic arms" could support her and acknowledges it would be a struggle as .
"there are too many things tying [her] to the ground." She has matured and accepts .
her changed circumstances but still pines for those moments of freedom she .
experienced as a child and remembers, symbolised by the washing machine and the .
memories it evokes. .
This story highlights the passage of time and stages of our life that bring change and .
development yet it also evokes the adult nostalgia for the fun, innocence and freedom .
of childhood. The title reflects the childhood's whimsical notion of being "sky-high" .
on the washing line while the conclusion reflects the realistic image of an adult being .
tied to the ground. The young child is fearless, inquisitive and imaginative, acting on .
impulse. Her descriptions of her world and people in it are non-judgemental. The .
narrator reminds us that as an adult she still feels "a small pilot light burning" but she rationalises it, preventing herself from responding to a moment of inspiration and .
perhaps, even briefly, entering another world - one of her youth or alternatively a new .
one. The author encourages the reader to consider their own circumstances and .