Piecing Me Together: Chapters 42 - 43 Summary & Analysis

Mom knows that the food in the fridge is from Mrs. Winters and she knows that Jade isn’t telling her everything about what’s going on with Woman to Woman. Mom asks if things are going well and if Jade loves hanging out with Maxine. Jade says she’s thinking of quitting the program—she feels like Maxine’s charity case. Mom refuses to let Jade quit, reminding her of the scholarship. She also notes that not everyone has someone like Maxine to look up to. Jade says that she doesn’t look up to Maxine—Maxine is using Jade to feel better about herself and Mrs. Winters sent home the food because she feels bad. Jade insists that if people with money act like this, she’d rather stay poor.

This is the first time Jade has ever called her family poor. Mom tells Jade this is foolish, goes to her bedroom, and returns with a jar of coins. Jade can tell Mom is furious as Mom asks if Jade wants to grow up to save money in a jar. Mom says that Maxine isn’t perfect, but Jade is acting stupid. She says that Maxine learned to navigate the white world and now she’s is trying to teach Jade to do the same. Mom tells Jade to figure out a way to make this program work. In Spanish class the next week, Mr. Flores teaches phrases pertaining to going to doctor, like “I don’t feel well” and “I have pain.”