In [Mama's] eye there is one patch of deep green that I call Green Island. I wade through the grayness until I reach the Green Island in Mama's eye. It's covered with shrubs and trees and it smells like earth. It's like my mother made a place on Green Island for everything I am (even the secret things) and I lay down in a soft bed of moss and fall asleep underneath the really tall pine tree.
-- Karen (chapter 1)

Importance: This quote establishes the safety and comfort Karen feels with Mama. It is only with Mama that Karen feels like she can fully accept and be comfortable with who she is. The Green Island becomes an important symbolic spot, particularly in the final pages of the novel.

As I walked along the side of the building, I found another rose petal stuck in between a bunch of dead plant stalks. When Mama went...
-- Karen (chapter 3)