"I thought it would be easier if we were just one color, black or white. I didn't want to be white. My siblings had already instilled the notion of black pride in me. I would have preferred that Mommy were black. Now, as a grown man, I feel privileged to have come from two worlds."

James McBride's The Color of Water:

A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother

Chapters 19-25, Epilogue, Afterword to the 10th Anniversary Edition, 

Thanks and Acknowledgments, About James McBride, 
About Ruth McBride Jordan 

In the closing portion of this coming-of-age memoir about race relations, Ruth begins by dictating her first stages of romance with McBride's father, Dennis of North Carolina. When she met Dennis's family, they were shocked (as anyone would be) of her opposite race but immediately welcomed her with open arms. Soon Mameh, Ruth's mother, becomes ill. Meanwhile, her father, Tateh, is having an affair! Scandalous for such a strict Jew, huh? Tateh leaves the store to his wife and children for long periods of time. Not long after his excursions with his mistress (a neighbor the family knew well, I might add!), Tateh asks Mameh for a divorce. But she refuses. This is what gained my respect for Mameh. I was also impressed with her generosity towards Ruth in her earlier years when she fled to live with her aunts. Eventually, Tateh gets his divorce in Reno, Nevada.

In Chapter 20, McBride takes a roadtrip to the South (Suffolk, Virginia) to visit his mother's past. At this point in McBride's life, he is at a point of indecision in his career. In turn, he faces confusion with his racial identity. In his journey to Suffolk, he sought to uncover the origins of his mother so that he could, in part, understand his own.

Ruth's tensions with her family become very apparent in Chapter 21 when her father basically tells her not to return home if she wishes to marry a colored man. Although I'm objective to interracial marriage (because I have no first-hand knowledge/experience or ties to the issue), it's sad to see the issue deteriorate a family bond. Ruth's mother dies in the Bronx hospital shortly after Ruth takes off. Guilt-stricken, Ruth feels remorse in abandoning her Mameh. Nevertheless, Ruth found strength in her love, Dennis, and her newfound affinity with Christianity.

Back to McBride: He locates the synagogue where Ruth and her family attended. There, McBride comes to terms with his Jewish roots. Loneliness enveloped as McBride walked the Nansemond River. The burden of his past was upon him, but he desired to embrace life and humanity all the same.

Harassment endured as Dennis and Ruth, an interracial couple, lived in 1940s Harlem. After living together for awhile, the couple attended the local baptist church and were soon married. Living in one room with four children for nine years, the couple grew closer and closer with each passing day. Times were tough. Money was tight. But love flourished. They soon established the New Brown Memorial Church in 1953. But in '57, Dennis became ill, leaving Ruth pregnant with their eighth child ---- James! Dennis died of lung cancer months later. Emotionally and financially unstable, Ruth looked to her generous community for help. She then married Hunter who promised to take care of her all the days of their lives. This portion of the book was bittersweet to me. As I watched the characters grow, I was in awe as I watched their lives grow spiritually. 

On several occasions, Ruth attests to the power of the word of God. If only women were as strong-willed and focused on Christ, right?! We could have many more amazing mothers in this country, raising their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Although mixed race kept haunting McBride which brought upon him identity crisis, McBride conveyed Ruth's upbringing of her children as her definition - her crowning accomplishment.

In the Epilogue, Ruth enters a synagogue for the first time since her childhood. Hesitant, Ruth soon realizes that Judaism has been a significant component of her heritage and she values it as she comes to terms with this virtue of her life.

I honestly thought --- this book is so not my thing. I'm too conservative to read about interracial marriages and what not. But I opened my mind and thoroughly enjoyed McBride's captivating tale of a black man's tribute to his white mother.