How we cite our quotes: ("Abbreviated chapter name," page)
Quote #1
"A long time ago...Jorge boarded the plane for New York, sick and shrunken in an ancient wheelchair. 'Butchers and veterinarians!' he shouted as they pushed him up the plank. 'That's what Cuba is now!'" ("Ocean Blue," 6)
Jorge's reaction to his homeland illustrates the familial divide on this subject: Celia believes in the Revolution and wouldn't leave if she could, whereas Lourdes and her husband's family have suffered unspeakably from the political upheaval. Pilar makes the observation that life is hard in Cuba, but people have the basic necessities. In Jorge's case, it isn't enough to thrive on.
Quote #2
"Because of this, Celia thinks, her husband will be buried in stiff, foreign earth. Because of this, their children and their grandchildren are nomads." ("Ocean Blue," 7, Celia is referring to El Lider's frustration at not being a ballplayer).
Lourdes sees the move to America as an unequivocal good—especially since she doesn't have a strong relationship with the mother or sister she's left behind in Cuba. Celia, on the other hand, feels the break up of her family very deeply. She feels abandoned, and although she can see that Cuba doesn't offer much in terms of material comfort, she thinks it is where her family belongs.
Quote #3
"Pilar...writes to her from Brooklyn in a Spanish that is no longer hers. She speaks the hard-edged lexicon of bygone tourists itchy to throw dice on green felt or asphalt. Pilar's eyes, Celia fears, are no longer used to the compacted light of the tropics, where a morning hour can fill a month of days in the north, which receives only careless sheddings from the sun." ("Ocean Blue," 7)
Celia's sorrow resides in the knowledge that her own flesh and blood are now, to some extent, strangers to her. Even though Pilar is sympathetic and has a special connection to her, Celia feels that New York can't offer her granddaughter what she needs to grow up whole and well.