Piecing Me Together

“But girls like me, with coal skin and hula-hoop hips, whose mommas barely make enough money to keep food in the house, have to take opportunities every chance we get.” 

Jade finds it exhausting to be the object of sympathy. She attributes this to her race (“coal skin”), her size (“hula-hoop hips”), and her socioeconomic status (“whose mommas barely make enough money”). As an object of sympathy, Jade needs to be constantly vigilant, and constantly accepting, of any opportunity presented to her. 

“I think about this as I ride to school. How I am someone’s answered prayer but also someone’s deferred dream.” 

Referencing the famous Harlem Renaissance writer Langston Hughes, Jade wonders if she is “someone’s deferred dream.” Jade reflects on her existence on her bus ride to school and views herself as split: On the one hand, her father tells Jade that she is one of the best things that happened to him. On the other, Jade knows that her mother sacrificed so much to raise her. 

“I think about Mrs. Parker. How she has a black son-in-law smiling at me from a frame. How proud she is of her free passes to Winterhawks games. How she wants me to have a mentor. How she’s always ready to give me an opportunity, a gift. Like what she is telling me is she comes in peace.” 

In the previous chapter, Lee Lee told Jade about her history class, in which she is studying Lewis and Clark’s role in American history. Jade wonders, when Lewis and Clark presented the Native American tribal leaders with gifts upon first meeting them, if the Native Americans realized that these gifts were “not so innocent” and that the colonists would pillage their land and strip them of their livelihood. In this passage, Jade draws a subtle comparison between her guidance counselor, Mrs. Parker, and the colonists. Jade insinuates that perhaps Mrs. Parker has ulterior motives for offering Jade so many “opportunities” as an underprivileged student at St. Francis. 

“The light changes. She walks away so fast, I can’t ask her what she means by that. Can’t ask her what it is she needs.” 

At first, Jade is skeptical of Woman to Woman. Sam, however, thinks that the program sounds great; she remarks to Jade that, through programs like Woman to Woman, at least people notice when Jade needs something, and then she goes on to say that no one ever thinks she needs anything. However, in this scene, before Jade can ask what Sam needs, Sam walks away. It is crucial to Jade to be asked exactly what she needs, and she comes to realize that programs like Woman to Woman are only good insofar as they are addressing real needs. This idea evolves as Jade continues with Woman to Woman. 

“I don’t know what to say to Mr. Franklin. I get it, that he’s been here a long time. But I know people who had to move. Mom says it was because the taxes got too high or because they didn’t own their homes in the first place. She says people who don’t own their homes don’t have any real power. I look around Sam’s house. She’s right: it’s small and stuffed and old. But it belongs to them, so that’s something. That’s a whole lot.” 

Jade and Sam have many commonalities on a socioeconomic level, particularly when compared to the wealthy student body at St. Francis. Both girls are from underprivileged, largely impoverished areas of Portland. However, in this passage, Jade notes that, even though the Franklins are poor (their house is “small and stuffed”), as property owners they have a kind of “freedom” that Jade and her family do not have as renters. 

“There are twelve girls who’ve been selected for the Woman to Woman mentorship programs.Twelve seeds.Twelve prayers. Twelve daughters.” 

Chapter 20 consists of Jade loosely ruminating on the number 12, almost in free-association style. This chapter is an example of the unique way in which the book is written, as fragments that fall outside the main narrative of Jade’s life are woven into the structure of the book. It mirrors the collage motif, underscoring Jade’s passion for art and her fragmented identity. 

“I know something happens between the time our mothers and fathers and teachers and mentors send us out into the world telling us, ‘The world is yours,’ and ‘You are beautiful,’ and ‘You can be anything,’ and the time we return to them.” 

Jade has an objectivity borne from her experiences as a young, black girl in an impoverished community. As listens to the advice of the well-meaning wealthy black women of Woman to Woman, she ruminates on how their promises are ultimately empty—the future is not guaranteed for Jade. This discrepancy makes Jade feel disillusioned with Woman to Woman.

“I think, She is not lucky. She works hard. Figured out a way to keep the lights on and the bills paid. Didn’t give up.” 

When Maxine says that Jade’s mother is “lucky” for having two jobs, Jade thinks to herself that her mother is not lucky but simply hard-working. This passage highlights the disconnect between Jade and Maxine, whose own mother is a surgeon, while Jade’s is a housekeeper/home health worker. Maxine’s privilege as an upper-middle-class person creates a blindspot when it comes to understanding Jade’s problems. 

“Maxine is right and wrong. Those girls are not the opposite of me. We are perpendicular. We may be on different paths, yes. But there’s a place where we touch, where we connect and are just the same.” 

Maxine—and, in many ways, the entire Woman to Woman program—is condescending in her approach to the impoverished communities Woman to Woman is intended to help. Jade is sensitive to Maxine’s derogatory comments about “those girls” —referring to the majority of Jade’s neighborhood peers in North Portland. Jade, however, feels a connection to those girls, and has commonalities with them, that Maxine does not grasp. 

"The only stores we go into are for skinny girls, so I'm glad I don't have any money to buy anything.” 

One of the key themes in Piecing Me Together revolves around intersectional identity. In this chapter, Jade accompanies Sam to the local mall, where Jade feels out of place. This passage concisely highlights the way in which two components of Jade's identity—her size and her socioeconomic status—contribute to her marginalization. 

“Mom walks to her bedroom. I hear her mumble, ‘I’ve never been to the symphony either.’ Her door closes.” 

Jade’s involvement in Woman to Woman creates a rift between her and her mother in some ways. When Jade finds out she will attend the symphony with Woman to Woman, her mother is happy for her but also bitter, as shown in the above quote. Jade’s mother feels as though the program is “uppity,” as she says later; she feels it threatens to make Jade forget the good aspects of her upbringing, her neighborhood, and where she comes from.  

“I do not want to be Maxine’s […] charity case, the rebellious backlash against her mother. I do not want her to feel she has to coach me on what to say.” 

Chapter 41 marks a major turning point in Jade and Maxine’s relationship. When Jade overhears that Maxine is involved in Woman to Woman just because she hopes her work as a “do-gooder” will make her look good to her family, Jade is deeply offended. As she says here, she does not want to be a “charity case” or a “backlash” against Mrs. Winters. This scene is the low point between Jade and Maxine that leads to a significant change. 

“‘So what, Maxine isn’t perfect? This girl graduated from St. Francis as valedictorian. She learned how to navigate this white world, and she’s trying to show you how to do the same. You telling me she has nothing to teach you? You better learn how to get from this opportunity what you can and let the rest fall off your back […] You understand what I’m saying, Jade?’” 

In this passage, Jade’s mother angrily forbids Jade from quitting Woman to Woman. Jade is unhappy with the way Maxine treats her, but Jade’s mother reminds her that even imperfect people can teach Jade things that are worth learning. Specifically, has learned how to “navigate this white world”; despite the major differences between Jade and Maxine in terms of socioeconomic class, as a black woman Maxine can help Jade learn to navigate a world that privileges white people. 

“‘Sometimes, Sam, I just want you to listen. Any time I bring up feeling like I’m being treated unfairly because I’m a black girl, you downplay it or make excuses. You never admit it’s about race’” 

Jade and Sam have a major argument in Chapter 54 when Sam accuses Jade of being jealous about her going to Costa Rica on the study abroad program. Jade explains that she is not jealous; she is angry and sad at the unfairness of her not having been nominated. Ultimately, Jade voices her main complaint, which is about not being heard: Jade feels as though Sam does not believe that she faces race-related discrimination. This moment is a defining one in Jade and Sam’s friendship. Jade finally draws attention to the fact that, while Jade and Sam bond over their shared socioeconomic class, Sam’s understanding of race and racial oppression is lacking.

“We keep walking. The whole way, I’m documenting the city, taking photos of strangers I’ve never seen, strangers I see every day. Like the woman who is always sitting on her porch, knitting something.” 

Jade sees beauty in the mundane. As she walks around Portland with Lee Lee and Andrea, she takes the casual outing as an opportunity to collect material for her art. With Jade’s artistic eye, even an activity as commonplace as knitting becomes a thing of beauty.  

“Their names are full and vibrant against the backdrop of black sadness. Their names. So many, they spill off the page.” 

Jade releases her feelings—intense sadness and frustration over racial injustice, on a personal level and in the world at large—into the collage she creates in Chapter 56. She takes the pictures from an average day with Lee Lee and Andrea and transforms them into a collage that makes a statement on all the “unarmed black men and women […] who’ve been assaulted or murdered by the police” (211). Collaging is not only a medium for artistic expression, it is also a vehicle for social justice, as Jade calls the victims “whole and vibrant” (211). 

“My word comes immediately. Inspired.” 

At the end of the Woman to Woman event at Mia’s art gallery, the mentees are asked to close their eyes and think about the art they just saw, letting one word come to mind. Jade’s word (“inspired”) comes to her almost instantly. This Woman to Woman outing is the first one that truly leaves Jade feeling motivated, marking a significant change in both Jade and the organization. 

“I like that she said our, like she’s okay with sharing me.” 

Jade’s mother says to Maxine that “our little artist”—referring to Jade—“is doing big things, huh?” (234). Jade’s mother is referring to the fact that Jade was invited to sell her collages at the Woman to Woman fundraising art auction, which is a fantastic chance for Jade to establish her reputation as a young, up-and-coming artist. Jade’s story is a coming-of-age story., and in this moment Jade is growing up, away from her mother and into her own as an artist. 

“Sabrina motions for Maxine to come over and talk with one of the board members. I stay behind, looking at the space on the wall where my art was. I think about these people who don’t even know me but want to support me, and I’m feeling seen and heard.” 

That Jade is feeling both “seen and heard” at the art auction sponsored by Woman to Woman marks a pivotal moment in the book—for Jade personally, but also for Woman to Woman as an organization. Up until this moment, Jade has been made to feel like an abject, broken person by Woman to Woman. However, as Maxine begins to listen to Jade—what her needs are, how Woman to Woman’s program makes her feel—Maxine is able to help guide the organization to change. Notably, in this scene, Woman to Woman helps Jade and the other mentees by empowering and uplifting them and by teaching them to be their own advocates. 

"But instead of saying what's on the card, I talk to her in my own words. Lo siento." 

In Spanish class, Jade and Sam are paired together for a group exercise that involves roleplaying conversations in Spanish. Because Jade and Sam have been fighting, Jade goes off script--she uses this opportunity to connect with Sam, to share what has really been on her mind. Jade apologies in Spanish ("lo siento"), which spurs a larger conversation. This passage illustrates one instance of how the motif of language is woven throughout the book; it also marks a pivotal moment in Jade and Sam's friendship. 

“I get Mom to try a few words. And while I am teaching Mom, she is teaching Maxine what a pinch of that and a dab of this means. While we wait for the food to cook, Mom adds in lessons on love and tells Maxine the remedy to a broken heart. Tells her how to move on. Mom looks at me and says ‘You paying attention? You’ll need this one day.’” 

Piecing Me Together explores the nature of mentorship and finds that it does not come from one type of person or experience. One of the main issues with the kind of mentorship espoused by Woman to Woman (and many other culturally accepted mentorship programs) is that the organization has a narrow view of what knowledge is valuable and worthy of being passed along. In this passage, the reader sees an exchange of knowledge between Maxine, Jade, and Jade’s mom—each of whom has something to learn and something to teach. 

“I get my camera and take a photo of the crowd. This one, I will not rip or reconfigure. This one, I will leave whole.” 

The art event for Natasha Ramsey is a success. Jade takes a photo of the event and notes that she will “not rip or reconfigure” the picture. The implication is that the night is perfect and does not need to be made perfect or modified by Jade’s collaging. 

“Our bodies, our own. Every smile a protest. Every laugh a miracle

This is an excerpt from Lee Lee’s poem titled “Black Girls Rising,” which she reads at the event for Natasha Ramsey. The poem is reproduced as a whole, with no introduction, in Chapter 75. The “our” refers to black girls, and these lines refer to how their successes and joys in life—their smiles, their laughter—are a “miracle,” given that systemic, violent oppression threatens their very existence.