Analyse this unseen poem, 'Handbag' by Ruth Fainlight

HandbagMy mother's old leather handbag, crowded with letters she carriedall through the war. The smellof my mother's handbag: mintsand lipstick and Coty powder.The look of those letters, softenedand worn at the edges, opened, read and refolded so often. Odour of leather and powder, which eversince then has meant womanliness,and love, and anguish, and war.
The speaker of 'Handbag' is a daughter reflecting on her mother's life during the war, and focusing on her staple handbag, symbolising her 'womanliness.' The poem starts with the daughter reminiscing about her mother's old belongings, introducing the time period by her phrase 'the war.' The phrase 'crowded with letters' is unusual, as the verb 'crowded' is mostly used to describe people. This personifies the letters, giving them more value. The enjambement at the end of the second line emphasises the length of time that the mother carried the letters, along with the phrase 'all through the war'. Fainlight then focuses on the smell of the handbag, and lists some dated, feminine belongings. 'Mints', 'lipstick', and 'powder' all symbolise the traditional image of women at the time.