What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day

Atlanta is a symbol of freedom. Ava moves to the city in 1984 after hearing that “if you [are] young and black and [have] any sense, Atlanta [is] the place to be” (7). Atlanta gives Ava an immediate escape from her entrapping life in Idlewild. It also promises excitement and newness, as the Black community there has “big dreams and big cars and good jobs and money in the bank” (7). For a time, Atlanta does offer Ava the life she hoped for. She meets new people, opens her own business, and forms a community. Because of the city’s symbolic significance to Ava, she feels like a failure when she leaves for Idlewild at the start of the novel.

Hair is a motif throughout the novel. Repeated references to and images of hair represent the characters’ true selves. Throughout Ava’s time running her hair salon, she realizes that caring for Black women’s hair is a gateway to nurturing their souls. This lesson stays with her throughout the years following. When she moves back to Idlewild, Ava continues to read and understand people via their hair. When she washes Joyce’s and Eddie’s hair, she is communicating with authentic, vulnerable versions of her sister and lover. When she gives Aretha Simmons a new, short hairstyle, she helps Aretha see her true self.

The Sewing Circus is a symbol of community. The Circus began as a women’s group affiliated with New Light Baptist Church. When Joyce assumed control of the group, the Circus grew into a force for change. Through the Sewing Circus, Joyce helps young women learn to care for themselves and their families. Ava’s involvement with the group lets her participate in Joyce’s social efforts too. At the same time, the Sewing Circus gives Ava, Joyce, and Eddie a sense of belonging, purpose, meaning, and connectivity.

Imani’s character symbolizes hope. Ava is initially reluctant to welcome the baby into her heart when she first joins the family. However, she falls in love with Imani after spending just a few weeks with her. Ava knows that she may not have much time until her illness progresses, but caring for Imani grants her life hope and possibility in the meantime. Not unlike Ava, Joyce, and Eddie, the baby has overcome hardships in her short life. Her resilience thus bolsters the characters’ spirits.