Tar Beach Memory and the Past Quotes

I will always remember when the stars fell down around me and lifted me up above the George Washington Bridge. (2)

The very first sentence tells us that Cassie is sharing a memory. When you "remember" something, it's in the past.

[The quilt around the borders of the pages] [1]

Quilts aren't exactly modern or new-fangled, you know? They remind us of the past.

[Laundry lines] (3-4)

You're not going to find too many laundry lines on the rooftops of New York City these days. That's one way we know the story is set in the past.