How we cite our quotes: (Paragraph)
Quote #7
Abuelita fell off the bed twice yesterday, I said, knowing that I shouldn't have said it and wondering why I wanted to say it because it only made Amá cry harder. (12)
We threw in this quote to remind you that, bricks aside, language can be violent as well. The narrator hurts her mother intentionally here by simply opening her mouth. It won't leave a physical scar, but in some ways, this wound might take longer to heal.
Quote #8
I guess I became angry and just so tired of the quarrels and beatings and unanswered prayers and my hands just there hanging helplessly by my side. (12)
Here the narrator explains why she lashes out at her mom with her angry, hurtful words. In short, she's tired of getting beaten up at home, the place she's supposed to feel safest. And those hands, which are made fun of by her sisters, and are used to beat them in retaliation, are actually just helpless. It's the helplessness that makes her so angry—she's too young to make changes to her life.
Quote #9
The scars on her back which were as thin as the life lines on the palms of her hands made me realize how little I really knew of Abuelita. (14)
Yikes. We don't know what happened to Abuelita to leave her with thin scars all over her back, but we can only imagine it wasn't pretty. The first thing that pops into our heads is a whipping. It seems probable that Abuelita grew up in a violent family just like the one the narrator is in, though they never talk about it.