The story begins with Mama, waiting for the arrival of Dee, her eldest daughter. She stands next to Maggie, her younger daughter, who is shy and has burn marks on her body. She got them when their house was burned down. Mama carried Maggie out of the fire while Dee did nothing and watched the house burn. Dee was driven and wanted to get more out of life than Mama, and her ancestry had to offer. All of it came at the expense of Maggie and Mama.
Dee arrives with Hakim, a barber, who is her boyfriend. Dee also goes by a new name, Wangero, and wants her family to use it. Dee is more interested in taking artifacts from her family than synthesizing with them. Therefore, they go through the possessions of Mama in their search for some special items of her African American descent, which she has intents at using them to spice up her house. Dee is somewhat rude when talking to Mama and Maggie and insults all in the name of some chit chat.
She tries to take quilts that were meant for her younger sister, and Dee wants them for herself. This results in Dee debating with Mama, claiming that she deserves the quilts more. Mama give Dee two different quilts and asks her to leave. After she is done, she gets into the car with Hakim, and they drive off, leaving a cloud of dust.