The montage of female role models in Maya's life significantly influences her growth and emotional well-being. From early times, she relies on the stiff, unyielding sanctimony and firm discipline of Momma Henderson, who insists on clean feet, respectful words, unquestioning obedience, and hard work. Unable to voice her love and devotion to Bailey and Maya, Momma settles for wholehearted attention to their needs, including home cooking, homilies, dental care, supervised homework, and tailored hand-me-downs or new garments sewn from her chest of fabrics kept safe with mothballs. When the time comes to restore the children to their parents, Momma stoically makes the decision, barters for rail tickets, and accompanies Maya to Los Angeles, where Vivian reassumes the role of mother long enough to get Momma and Maya settled, then returns to San Francisco. Six months later, with no more sentiment than she expressed in Stamps, Momma takes her leave, seemingly content that she has done her best for her youngest grandchild.
Moved to Oakland by Vivian, Maya passes into her mother's wide-open world, where an impromptu party at 2:30 a.m. seems in character with the urbane and much beloved woman who dances the Suzy Q, Time Step, and Snake Hips, bakes biscuits, swears, plays pinochle and poker for a living, and, when the occasion arises, conceals a .32 pistol in her skirt pocket for later use. Disdainfully proud and honest about her lifestyle, Vivian declares that she "wouldn't bust suds for anybody nor be anyone's kitchen bitch." Her yearning for fun and her intense loyalty to the children from whom she lived apart for nearly a decade endear her to Bailey and Maya, who attach no wrong to the spirited Mother Dear, the foil of their faithful, predictable Momma.
