The short story narrated by Isak Dinesen portrays a Lady Helena  to have some kind of emotional trauma after the ship that she was in caught on fire. The desire to travel and collect china was considerably something she gained desire because of her father. Her father was of great influence to Lady Helena when it came to traveling. The obsession she had for obtaining a specific color of blue was something her father could not make sense of. Her obsession to obtain the perfect blue color became so bad that even her aunts from England " implored her" to go back.  After many years of sailing her father suggested to her that maybe the "color which she sought did not exist".  Throughout the years of her search she found many jars with different blues but ended up unsatisfied. She never lost hope of finding her perfect blue jar. As the years passed by her father became older and soon died while sailing with Lady Helena. She too as well became "old and deaf", but never stopped sailing. The time soon arrived when a "merchant brought her a very old blue jar".  Her journey had now ended and could finally rest in peace. The blue jar represented a place where Lady Helena could feel secure and at peace. Isak reflects his overall theme of hope by incorporating Lady Helena last words as " Is it not a sweet thing to think that, if only you have patience, all that has ever been, will come back to you?", before finally dyeing.