IRB Blog Post 3

"'I don't know why you can't go to New York too,' I said. 'We are each going to our mothers. That is what was supposed to happen. Your mother wants to see you now, Sophie. She does not want you to forget who your real mother is. When she left you with me, she and I, we agreed that it would only be for a while. You were just a baby then. She left you because she was going to a place she knew nothing about. She did not want to take chances with you.'" (Danticat, 20)

I chose this quote from the very beginning of the section because it makes me wonder; it has not been mentioned yet why Sophie's mother actually decided to leave Haiti and go to New York nor has it mentioned what time period the story is taking place. The fact that the time period is unknown could play a huge factor in why a mother would think it was better for them to leave their child in Haiti rather than bring them to New York. Also in this quote Atie says that "she did not want to take chances with you". What chances? What fear did Sophie's mother have? Reading this quote only made me more intrigued by the story and made me anxious to have these questions answered.