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Generations through generation traditions have been passed down from grandmother to mother to daughter. In the novel, A Yellow in Blue Water, it was a tradition of their heritage, that Rayona, Christine, and Ida didn't forget. Braiding is mentioned throughout the entire novel in each story of the women. An example of braiding and beauty tips is when Rayona is sitting next to her mother, Christine's, side in the hospital. "[Christine] ha[d] earlier spent …

…of the braid helps to symbolize all the confusion they experience with each other and all the family troubles they encounter during their lives. The braid binds them together by its strands. The catching and letting go of the hair symbolizes the grudges and forgiveness of all the things they hold against each other. With the braid, they can let go of what they choose, and hold on to the memories they want to remember.