Edwidge Danticat Quotes

For in those tacit understandings which maintain the bond of family union, the mother is really the mistress of her daughter only upon the condition of continually presenting herself to her as a model of wisdom and type of perfection.

On her daughter Melissa: The only time she really cried is when I sat her down and told her that she was not adopted.

I'm very different to my mum. I'm not as beautiful as she is, nor - she probably despairs about this - as groomed. I certainly rebelled against her idea of looking well turned-out. I spent several years with a shaved head in jeans and baggy shirts.

My mom and my dad were married 56 years, and the fact that I reconciled with my dad I think made their marriage a little bit better as well.

Well, my mom is single and we've both been single at the same time over the last ten years, so I really related to the bond between my character and Diane's.

My daughter has impressions that she does of me.

That's one thing I find about having children - it does unlock a door that separates you from other women who've had children.

I've always stayed really close with my mother and my father.

The thing about having a very young mother who had you at 20 is that you expect that you're going to be old ladies together.

I think my mother is my biggest influence. There are so many things I hate about her but at the same time I'm thankful for her. All I know is that when I'm a parent I want to be just like my mom. I can talk to my mom more than any of my friends could talk to their parents.

I think my mother realized she had a somewhat unusual daughter pretty early on.

My daughter is the most normal towards me. For her, I am just her mom. I am just a regular mom, and the actor comes after that. If she likes something that I am wearing, she tells me, and if she doesn't, she still makes it a point to let me know.

It's a weird thing to have your dad or your parent be on the stage with a million people saying their name, and you're like, 'No, that's just dad.'

Brielle is my first born; I had her so young that we basically grew up together!

When I was younger, I used to spend a lot of time either by myself or with my mom. But when I hit high school, she really became one of my close friends.

My daughter gave me a whole new perspective.

Me and my mom are pretty cool. My mother's Caribbean, and she gets a little spicy, and I get a little spicy back.

There was a certain power beautiful mothers held over their less beautiful daughters.

...I do not tell you often enough, dear Mother, how very grateful I am that I am yours. It is a rare parent who would offer a child such latitude and understanding. It is an even rarer one who calls a daughter friend. I do love you, dear Mama.

A Daughter: The companion, the friend, and the confidant of her mother, and the object of a pleasure something like the love between the angels to her father.

I bring the experiences of women. As a daughter, as a mother, as a wife, as a sister. That is who I am. Those experiences are part of me. And it is part of our American journey that we have moved through so much of what used to hold people back because of gender, because of race.

Your daughter is your child for life.

There are many more women who identify as unique people as well as mothers, or instead of as mothers, than there used to be and, hopefully, there are more men who identify as fathers.

He (son Jason) doesn't see me as a (gay) icon, he sees me as his mother who touches his hair too much. No, I love being an icon to anybody. Equal rights, you know?

Until adolescence I thought I had the best mother in the world. Such a graceful mother. I had this fantasy that I was the wrong daughter.