“A Worn Path” – A Godmother’s devotion. Born on April 13, 1909, in Jackson Mississippi, Eudora Welty was later known as one of the most important American writer and editors in the 20th century. In her short story “A Worn Path,” Welty fabricates an older, thoughtful lady named Phoenix Jackson. Welty describes Phoenix Jackson as having “a golden color” to her skin and her cheeks are “illuminated by a yellow burning under the dark”(p.38) Also, she is wearing a “red rag” on her head. Not only was Phoenix old, but her vision was also deteriorating, and her poetic view of the world deepens the symbolism of the story. Welty named her character Phoenix after a magical bird from ancient stories that lived for 500 years before it burns