Every day after school I would go to their house, watch their TV, eat at their table, sleep on their beds, and play in their backyard. The whole house was covered with smooth, white tile, which would always be cold regardless of the 90 degree weather outside. The coolness of the house mainly depended on the breeze blowing, which was very likely with the big glass doors that led to the backyard and the innumerable amount of glass windows, which also made electric light unnecessary. A ceiling fan decorated every room of the house, and the light coloring on the walls provoked in me a sense of peacefulness and tranquility. I felt safe. It was my home, still is, and always will be. I can close my eyes and still manage to visualize every detail of this house. I can still see that little girl playing on the swing set that Santa Claus brought her that one Christmas, and I can still see my grandma making us asopao de pollo with a side of yellow fried plantains and of course, a nice, cold glass of chocolate milk.
I
“Mucho juicio” (“Have good judgment”) said my grandma every time either my sister or I would leave the house. These words would almost always be followed by an “Oh my god, grandma, I know!” or “Like I already don’t have good judgment!” There were plenty of annoying things my grandma told me, but this phrase was the most annoying one I had ever heard. As a teenager, I could sense distrust, though for the most part it was actually non-existent. I thought, “why on earth would grandma assume that I’m looking for trouble?” and even if she was just worried about me being exposed to it, “why would she not trust me?”
II
“El que no oye consejos, no llega a viejo” (“Those who don’t listen to advice, will not make it to elderly life”) is still one of my grandma’s favorite lines. She uses it whenever she senses that her “suggestions” are not being taken into consideration, and by “suggestions,” I really mean commands. My grandma is indeed a very dominant woman or what in the animal world is considered an “alpha female.” Therefore, she cannot stand when things do not go her way. My grandparents have been married for almost 47 years now, so you can only imagine what kind of personality my grandpa has—of course, the absolute opposite!
III
“God bless you.” Enough has been said. You could say almost every grandma in the Christian world says this to their grandchildren. But I can definitely sense the awkwardness of these words being spoken into my ear as part of the weekly or biweekly phone routine. My grandma doesn’t seem to acknowledge the fact that I have given up the Catholic religion for several years now. I guess she still has hope that I will all of a sudden enjoy attending church again or she just does not understand the concept of someone not believing in God. But even though I don’t believe that an actual god is giving me a blessing, isn’t having a grandma to tell me these things a blessing in itself?IV
V
“Without an education, you are nobody,” is probably the oldest quote belonging to my dear grandma. My family places a high value on education, and being raised by my grandmother, I did hear this mostly coming from her. She would always say that you should finish college first before doing anything else with your life. You should not put a man before your education—no marriage, pregnancy, “taking a break from school,” and definitely, absolutely no fooling around or wasting time that could be spent studying. My grandpa and her even have been taking over the burden of paying for my college education to lessen my stress so that I can focus on school. VI
“You’re crazy like your mother.” My grandma seems to have a problem with my liking of animals. According to her, I am as obsessed as my mom, and have no self control when it comes to getting and keeping animals. She always says that you should only have “as many as you can support,” but even if I could afford to keep twenty dogs, she still wouldn’t be happy about it. Shopping, on the other hand, is another story. If it has to do with shopping, you can never have too much of it with my grandma. Just like my mom and I share a passion for animals, my grandma and I share one for shopping. It is always nice to have a grandpa that is willing to put down some money to complement a perfect shopping experience.
But these words never had as much meaning as they do today. My grandparents have had a great impact in my life. If it wasn’t for them I would not be standing where I am today. When I think of my grandma and one of her ridiculous quotes, I can’t help but smile, as I remember those days, when I used to take life for granted, those childhood days where all I wanted to do was grow up, but all growing up really meant was leaving moments behind.
***
As a reader, being presented with just images would leave me troubled. It would make me wonder about where the pictures came from and what is their story and purpose. In this case, my images do not suffice independently, as their purpose is to complement the text and to give it a more personal perspective. Although my images seem to portray a similar theme, they may be misleading. You would expect to see these images as part of a family photo album, without having any particular connotation. By adding images to my narration, I turned the reading of the text into a more interactive, personal experience. As the viewer reads my text, he/she would get a visual image of the main character and setting, which would help in the understanding of the narrative. First-person narration adds to the personal outlook created by the pictures themselves. Finally, by choosing “Claire de Lune” by the impressionist composer Claude Debussy as background music, I am setting the mood for the reader. This song has a relaxing melody that induces nostalgia, and the absence of lyrics help the viewer stay focused.
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