Lost Sister Quote and Interpretation

In class the other day, we were given a “quiz”. We had to pick one quote from the poem, Lost Sister, and then explain what the poem says about how one defines oneself.

The quote I picked from Lost Sister was this:

“You find you need China:
Your one fragile identification,
A Jade link
Handcuffed to your wrist.”

I think that this quote is important because it implies that part of what defines you, is where you come from. For the Chinese, Jade is a highly prized stone. All first born daughters receive the same name, Jade. In the above quote, the jade link represents China, where Jade, the main character, had been born. The bracelet serves as a reminder of where she came from. The use of the word “handcuffed,” shows that it is irremovable, and that Jade hadn’t chosen it for herself; it was given to her and she had no say in the matter.

A person can never shake off where they come from, or forget home. Your home makes you part of who you are. You don’t get to choose where you come from, but regardless of whether or not you like the place, you are stuck with it. To detach that piece from yourself would be like breaking a piece off a completed puzzle. It would leave an empty space, and the puzzle uncompleted and unfinished. After Jade rebelled, and left her home in China for America, she suffered from feelings of loneliness. Jade realized that she needed China, her home.

This poem’s message is that where you come from, defines yourself. A person born in Antarctica would develop differently than someone living in Africa. They would have different traditions, morals, habits, and even physical appearances. The culture in which we grow up, affects us more than we realize, in more ways than one.