Read the excerpt from "Digging."Till his straining rump among the flowerbedsBends low, comes up twenty years awayStooping in rhythm through potato drillsWhere he was digging.

Words like “straining,” “bends low,” and “stooping” emphasize the physical effort involved in the father’s work. The speaker pictures his father working hard among the flowerbeds, so the best choice is “that the father is working very hard in the flowerbeds.” “Twenty years away” refers to a memory from the past; it does not mean the father has died.

AI-written and checked against the verified answer.