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Enough: On reaching milestones
When he first smiled as a tiny baby, I remember thinking, this is amazing. It was enough. And then he laughed and I wondered, how did I ever know how beautiful life could be before I heard his laugh?...
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Forty plus one
I wrote these thoughts yesterday morning. I now realize there’s a few similarities between what I wrote on Xavi’s due date and what I feel on Bubble’s due date. I seem to have skipped the nesting...
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Papá Chepe and Undying Love
I wish somebody had told me love does not die, that we can continue to receive and give love after death. From “Resurrections”, by Sandra Cisneros in A House of My Own: Stories From My Life Papá Chepe...
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Eulogy for Papá Chepe
Today my family laid Papá Chepe to rest. I couldn’t be there for the wake and funeral. I wasn’t there to sing alongside dad, Lori and Danny nor there to pray the Rosary. I didn’t get to see Adrian...
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La Cuarentena, the first forty days
Earlier versions of this post were drafted in September-November 2016. Updated for clarity. ***The day after Mamá Toni passed away almost two years ago my mom shared an idea with me. “I was thinking...
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Adjusting two years later
May and June were a trip. Literally. Early in May, we went to NYC for Eric and Sandrine’s wedding. Sean and Eric grew up together and have been friends since first grade. Naturally, the wedding was...
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Carlos & Luz: 40 years of making it look easy
I wasn’t there 40 years ago when my parents exchanged vows in front of their family, a huge wedding party, and many more friends. Their union was blessed in Assumption Church in Boyle Heights. The...
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Ninety-seven
Birthdays were always a big deal for Papá Chepe and late July meant celebrating in some way. There were the big parties just for him complete with the tamborazo. But he wasn’t above sharing the...
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Xavi’s Fantastic Fourth Birthday
On ring bearer dutyOn Monday night, just a few hours before his fourth birthday, I rocked Xavi in my arms like he was still a baby. His long, tanned legs and arms reaching well over my lap. He was...
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Archie, we made it!
Earlier today I looked up Archie’s birth story. I had forgotten the exact hour and minute Archie made his way into the world. I know these numbers well for Xavi. But Archie? I just had a round...
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