#7

The central theme of "Those Winter Sundays" is regret. Throughout the poem, the speaker recalls things that his father did for him and his family for which he was never thanked. The father made fires in the morning with hands tired for labor, but his kindness went unnoticed. When the author says "No one ever thanked him", it seems as though he feels regret for not thanking his father. The questions at the end of the poem reinforce the theme of regret. The questions seem to me like the uncertainty which loved ones experience after a relative's death. The speaker is asking himself why he never thanked his father for all of the things he did because he feels guilt and regret. Because his father has just died, he lost the chance to thank his father and change things, so his guilt is growing.