UPDATED August 1st, 2016 I like to joke that my mother had children so we could worship the ground she walked on. How she plotted the three kids she’d push out with my father so they would adore her unconditionally. As she went into labor, her brow sweating, she must have hollered, “Another minion to […]
My relationship with Mami is about to change. In less than a month, I will be moving away cross country to Los Angeles for a month, and we will be physically apart for the first time since 2006. I am so thrilled.
At 18 years old, I fell in love with a bad boy. I fell head over heals for a man who was not my boyfriend and who rubbed it in my face every chance he could. Oh, how my heart broke when he kissed other women in front of me. When he asked for my […]
No little girl wants to become her mother. No matter how great her mother is or how loving, there’s a rebellion that goes along with womanhood. This is especially true when we experience disappointments due to our parents mistakes. As children, their cycle becomes our cycle. We cannot escape the affects of neglect or abuse […]
After a night of drinking too much Bacardi and Coca Cola, I decided to tackle the mountain of clothing that had invaded my sofa. I opened my closet, always stuffed as I have only one closet in my Mami’s New York apartment, and hooked my leopard print shirt onto my multi-purpose hanger. Suddenly, I heard […]
Me, a Special Ed teacher? I’ve never been a patient person. Not at almost 34 and definitely not at 22. Yet, after graduating from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, I took a profession where patience, understanding and even more patience is needed. I became a Special Education public school teacher. My formal training was […]
I am still afraid of my mother. And it’s not because she’s 5 foot 8 or she hit me with a pastel pink belt when I was 10 years old. I deserved the whooping. Always a picky eater and a clever little girl, I had the brilliant idea to hide pieces of boiled platanos inside […]
Mami and my stepfather are arguing more often. I hear their spats from my bedroom and want to hide in my closet, shrinking in a corner like a 7-year-old that is scared of The Boogie Man. I hate conflict. I can’t stand the yelling and the slamming of doors. It reminds me too much of […]
UPDATED August 1st, 2016 I’ve decided it’s time to get my own place. But I feel an enormous amount of guilt over this. I concocted this plan after a ridiculous battle ensued between Mami and me. The culprit: a mountain of clothing. The location: my bedroom couch. Which is inside my New York apartment within […]