"""When I looked at her like that something hit me in the top of my head and ran down to the soles of my feet." What hit mama? What did she understand...""

Mama herself doesn't seem to know quite what this "something" is, but we can guess
from her response to it. Upon hearing Maggie say that her sister can have the quilts, because
she can remember her grandmother without them, Mama is overwhelmed with the desire to hug her
younger daughter. It is as if she has suddenly realized, in this moment, that fearful Maggie is
actually the much worthier daughter, and yet she expects nothingshe believes her
"portion" in life is to be second place to her sister, and yet it is Maggie who knows
how to quilt the way her foremothers did, and therefore it is Maggie who will be the true
preserver of the family's heritage, not Dee, who does not understand what heritage really is, or
what the quilts should be used for. Overwhelmed by compassion for Maggie, Mama decides to reward
her for her selfless, uncomplaining nature, and punish Dee for her selfish one, by gifting the
quilts...