The relationship between the narrator and her grandmother

The short story “Walk Don’t Run” by Douglas Bruton focuses on the relationship between the narrator and her grandmother, which is complicated because of the mixed feelings the narrator has about her. 

The narrator does not like taking care of her grandmother and is frustrated that she has to spend her weekends like this when she could be spending time with her boyfriend instead (ll. 21-25). She also feels disgusted by the grandmother’s physical condition (ll. 16-17) and finds her faint smell of fish repulsive (ll. 29-30). When she mentions that someone relieves her from her job at six, she says “they’re never late and I should be grateful for that” (ll. 33-34). This suggests that she sees taking care of her grandmother as an unpleasant job. However, the narrator does the job carefully and thoroughly, despite her reluctance. This suggests her underlying affection for her grandmother.

The narrator identifies with her grandmother in several ways. It is mentioned a couple of times that the narrator l...