Redwood and Ponytail
58 pages • 1-hour read
K. A. HoltRedwood and Ponytail
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Symbols & Motifs
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of antigay bias.
Mascot
Kate’s Falcon mascot costume is a symbol of her true self and develops the theme of Journey Toward Claiming Queer Identity. When Kate first volunteers to fill in as the school mascot, she doesn’t expect to have so much fun. Being the mascot feels freeing because Kate gets to experiment and play in a way she can’t as a cheerleader; cheerleading requires her to look a certain way and to sync her movements and demeanor with her squad. As the Falcon, Kate looks unique, and gets to leap, flap, dance, and run around to make people laugh—forms of expression that feel truer to Kate’s authentic, developing self.
Kate’s mother’s response to the Falcon mascot role and costume conveys her disapproval of Kate’s true self, particularly her queer identity. When Kate first brings the costume home in the poem “Kate: Her nails tap on wood,” Kate says, “She was not happy / when she saw the falcon head. / She was not happy when I stuffed it / in the car. / She was not happy I had not / told her earlier. / Her nails / continue / to / tap” (59). The head is large and intrusive, physically disrupting Kate’s mom’s ideas of the perfect, small, orderly daughter that she is raising. Her mom taps her nails because she is nervous and irritated: “You do realize… / only cheerleaders / can be cheer captains / A mascot is NOT / part of the squad” (60). The mascot does not fit in with the rest of the cheerleaders; it intentionally stands out and demands attention for being different.
For the majority of the novel, Kate hides the truth from her mom: She loves being the mascot and would rather stay on as the Falcon than pursue the cheer captain position. When she finally tells Coach and her mom what she wants, she is embracing her truest self and owning the messy, obtrusive, unique parts of herself that others historically have not liked.
MisDirection
The boy band MisDirection is a symbol of peer pressure and connects to the theme of Striving for Perfection Due to Parental and Societal Expectations. Kate believes that she has to like the band because all of her friends like the band. Everyone on the cheer squad giggles and squeals when they listen to the band’s romantic songs or even just sees images of their faces. Until Kate meets and gets to know Tam, she doesn’t know that she’s allowed to question her canned musical taste. She thinks it’s obvious that all girls should like the boy band, because she is used to doing and acting the way others want her to. She doesn’t like not fitting in.
Tam, on the other hand, is open about her distaste for the boy band. Tam believes that boys like the MisDirection band members “make themselves […] / look […] / like […] / girls […] / so the girls […] / will […] / like them” (376). She has no interest in the band because they represent a brand of gender normativity and gender conformity that she doesn’t agree with or like. When Kate finally burns her MisDirection poster off her bedroom wall, she is letting go of the part of her that believed she had to fit in to find belonging and acceptance.
Bracelet
The bracelet Kate makes for Tam is a symbol of connection. The bracelet isn’t the sort of thing Tam would usually wear. However, she keeps the bracelet on her wrist throughout the majority of the novel because it makes her feel connected to her new friend and crush. Later in the novel, the narrative depicts Tam snapping the bracelet nervously against her wrist—a new behavior that conveys Tam’s frustration with Kate and anxiety over their unresolved conflicts. She eventually takes it off because she thinks Kate has chosen “The squad. / MisDirection. / Boyfriends” over her (375).
Renovation
The ongoing flooring renovation at Kate’s house is a symbol of change. Literally, Kate’s mom is having the old flooring torn up and a new floor installed. Throughout the novel, Kate will often tune into the renovation as a metaphor for her state of mind when she is feeling restless, disappointed in herself, or stuck. For example, when Kate gets into another argument with her mom about being the mascot, she “look[s] at the torn-up floor, / the living room reborn” and feels “like, inside, / [her] guts are the same. / [she’s] breaking apart, / changing, / and it’s happening faster / every day” (212). Kate is evolving over the course of the novel and doesn’t know how to stop it. She is afraid that, like the renovation, her changes are too noisy and obtrusive for those around her.
Tree
Throughout the novel, Kate and Tam often sit under a tree together and talk. When they share this outdoor space, they feel connected and free, developing the theme of Finding Safety and Affirmation in Loving Relationships. The tree symbolizes growth and new life. Both characters are changing and maturing. Their journeys toward personal growth are distinct to each of them, but they intersect and inform one another, too. Like the tree, they are branching out. They are trying new things, engaging in new forms of intimacy, and discovering new places to explore.
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