Yellow flowers symbolize Caroline’s mother’s presence, and they appear twice. In Chapter 1, The yellow flowers are dying no matter how much Caroline waters them, symbolizing the loss of her mother’s care. When Caroline goes to the address written on the back of the photograph of her mother and Miss Joe, Idris tells her she lives in “a white house standing on its own [with] a garden of yellow flowers” (174). Caroline and Kalinda go to the house, and “standing tall before the brush is a white house with a garden of yellow flowers, and standing on the porch is a little girl” (175). The images of the yellow flowers provide a sense of conclusion, even before Doreen arrives.

The scarred, brown hill on Water Island symbolizes a loss of innocence for Caroline. When the fireworks exploded over Water Island instead of over the sea almost seven years prior during Carnival, a house at the top of the hill caught fire, and the man living there died. This story reinforces the theme that Caroline is no longer a child. She tells this story to Kalinda, who also once witnessed death, and they both agree that they are no longer children.