*Read the poem and answer the following questions below.*

SPACESHIPS

We waited behind bushes,
sniper like discipline,
for our uncles to arrive.
The four of us,
recounting the last time
we’d spotted them,
the brilliance in what we saw,
how we squinted and pointed,
dug in penniless pockets
for cameras we didn’t own.

None had large heads
or oval shaped eyes.
They weren’t eight feet tall
with iron claws,
hanging dreads.
But they were out of this world.
When they landed their Chevys
we’d rub our eyes
making sure it was bona fide,
that these flying saucers
had discos inside.

Questions
1. In “Spaceships,” upon witnessing their uncles, the speaker and three others “dug in penniless pockets / for cameras we didn’t own.” Why do they want to take pictures of their uncles?

2. Whom or what are the uncles being compared to throughout the poem? Cite lines or words from the poem as support.

3. Why does the speaker end the poem by “[making sure] that these flying saucers / had discos inside”? How does this image relate to what the speaker is describing, as well as the poem’s meaning? Explain, citing any other passage from the poem that supports your answer.

4. What context clues helped you determine the meaning of the word recounting as it is used in the first stanza of “Spaceships”? Write your own definition of recounting and cite the clues in the text that led you to that definition.
Read the following dictionary entry:

brilliance
extreme or intense light
bright, vivid color
extreme talent or intelligence

5. Which definition most closely matches the word brilliance as it is used in the text? Write the correct definition of brilliance here and explain how you figured it out.