“A daughter is a mother's gender partner, her closest ally in the family confederacy, an extension of her self. And mothers are their daughters' role model, their biological and emotional road map, the arbiter of all their relationships.”

“Every Mother contains her daughter in herself and every daughter her mother and every mother extends backwards into her mother and forwards into her daughter.”

“a mother's death also means the loss of the consistent, supportive family system that once supplied her with a secure home base, she then has to develop her self-confidence and self-esteem through alternate means. Without a mother or mother-figure to guide her, a daughter also has to piece together a female self-image of her own.”

“A Mother who radiates self-love and self-acceptance actually VACCINATES her daughter against low self-esteem. ”

“The more a daughter knows the details of her mother's life-without flinching or whining-the stronger the daughter.”

“I thought of her as my mother, but rarely of myself as her daughter.”