Sin
Jackie Kay was a symbol sin for her birth parents. She was born after the affair between a Nigerian student at Aberdeen University and a nurse. They didn't marry because of their races and the racist attitude prevailing in their societies so their child was a result of an adulterous relationship. When Kay finds her father, she gets to know that he has become a born again Christian and has devoted his life to Christ. Kay was given to adoption because her father wanted to save his family's respect. While her mother belonged to the Catholic community and in her community it was acceptable to bear a child with an African man. Kay's mother Elizabeth joined the Mormon Church. She found solace by denying her past sins in the church. Despite of making them self-righteous, Kay's parents refer to their daughter as sin. Her father refuses to meet her because she reminds him of his sinful life. Elizabeth also refuses because she would have to face her past sin in the form of Kay after meeting with her.
Mirror
Kay's sister symbolizes a mirror in which she sees herself. While living with her foster parents, Jay craves for her identity and culture. She feels herself as an alien in white society and she often think about her real culture. After meeting her sisters, she realizes that she is like them. They had the same color, eyes and hairs as hers. She becomes very happy at the sight of them and feels like she has come across q mirror which is showing her actual identity.
Identity
The most prominent motif in the book is identity. Since her birth, Jackie Kay has thought about her identity; she feels as if she doesn't belong to the place in which she lives. She keeps on thinking about her birth parents, their appearance and her culture. She struggles to find them to achieve her own identity. Her foster parents help her in this regard. Kay says that there are two types of adopted children. Those who are not concerned about their actual parentage and those who remain curious about their birth parents and their identities throughout their lives. Kay belonged to the second category of children. She remains obsessed with the idea of finding her self identity. She says, " Is she the person she is because of nature or nurture?" She undergoes an identity crisis and keeps on struggling to find her parents to achieve her real identity.
Adoption
Another motif in the book is adoption. Jackie Kay was an adopted child. Despite of her foster patents' love and care, she wanted to find her birth parents. She says, " My mum all those years ago sensed a child who had been adopted was also a child who could feel terribly hurt. And no matter how much she loved me, no matter how much my dad loved me, there is still a windy place right at the core of my heart. The windy place is like Wuthering Heights, out on open moors, rugged and wild and free and lonely. The wind rages and batters at the trees. I struggle against the windy place. I sometimes even forget it. But there it is. I am partly defeated by it." Kay was living a happy life but she was not satisfied because of lack of awareness about her birth parents. Her foster mother assists her in finding them and in attaining a sense of identity.
