The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

In the last sentence, the repetition of questions such as "how did you hold her?" and "Like this?" manifests Esperanza's heightened sexual curiosity. Indeed, Esperanza's expectancy is related to physical awakening, as evidenced by images of bursting and renewal, and physical sensation: "Everything is holding its breath inside me. Everything is waiting to explode like Christmas. I want to be all new and shiny. I want to sit out bad at night, a boy around my neck and the wind under my skirt."