The line "A sift of lost faces" is a powerful image that evokes a sense of loss, memory, and the passage of time.
Here's a breakdown of its meaning:
* "Sift" suggests a process of separating, filtering, or extracting. It's like sifting flour, where you're removing unwanted particles, leaving behind the essential ingredient.
* "Lost Faces" refers to the faces of people who are no longer physically present. These could be ancestors, friends, neighbors, or anyone who has passed away or disappeared from the speaker's life.
* "Sift of Lost Faces" creates a visual image of these memories being gradually revealed and revisited, like sifting through a pile of sand to find precious gems. The faces are both present and absent, both remembered and lost.
The line underscores the poem's themes of identity, belonging, and the role of the past in shaping the present. The speaker is trying to understand who they are by connecting with their roots, and the "sift of lost faces" represents the process of unearthing those connections.
Ultimately, the line is open to interpretation, but it speaks to the power of memory and the impact of those who have come before us.