Generations
The Things We Never Say: A Family History
My mother traded her independence for the fullness of a family, tied it to a post for the confines of marriage.
Of Spanish and My Grandmother
“Alzheimer’s had been pickpocketing her of a few memories each day until finally I was just a voice she couldn’t place.”
The Peaches: How to Punish the Fruit of Your Own Flesh
My grandmother wanted a perfect funeral for the man who’d beaten and abused her for all fifty years of their marriage.
Your Name Is a Blessing to Stand On
“We didn’t know that where we came from, we named like praying.”
Division of Labor: When You Crave Order and Your Family Doesn’t
“My parents had a shared language I didn’t understand, messes I couldn’t always be there to tidy.”
The Privilege of Having Soft Hands
My parents’ hands were the remnants of great struggle. Mine somehow remained untouched.
Decades After Foster Care, I Found My Long-Lost Brother
“If I’d stayed, I could have protected him. That’s what I believed. Maybe he believed that, too.”
The Bathrobe: On Quilting and Memory
The act of quilting is the transformations of meaning and object.
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How My Parents Met
“She revealed her affection for him while also noting his otherness.”
My Father’s Car, His Watch, and His New Nursing Home
I am driving my father’s car to my hometown to put him in a nursing home.