it’s the best friday of the year: the day spring break begins. every anniversary of baby jesus’ sacrifice is spent with our maternal family.
most of the time is spent at abuela’s. we only visit titi lumy; rarely stay at her house.
on the very last day of the vacation we get the best treat of them all: we get to stay with mami irma.
she’s my abuela and titi’s cousin so we’re supposed to call her titi. mami irma is more appropiate. she’s the wisest, calmest, most bright northern star in our lives. the glue that keeps my abuela and titi together.
titi lumy is… different. the brightness of the sun and darkness of the moon live within her. she’s my abuela’s sister. a strict head start teacher that doesn’t really like kids. she’s demanding of them and teaches through threatening eyes. her name literally translates to enlightened. she’s anything but. titi lumy is negative, closed minded. beyond narcissistic; machiavellian.. she’s also giving, caring… with me and my brother. she’s always quick to smoother us with wet kisses and gifts. nothing is ever said about our mom, but the matriarchs more than make up for her absence.
on this blessed friday, a week away from good friday, we sit in the patio set titi lumy has in her roofless and carless garage, playing bingo, enjoying the tea being shared by the matriarchs, memorizing abuela’s inappropriate jokes before calling out numbers. it’s magical! we’re safe! i mean, pizza hut was just delivered!!!!!!
the night just set and miraculously there’s no mosquitos attacking our bare legs. it’s been a hot spring; the breeze by the massive mango tree overtaking my titi’s modest 2 bedroom house is so very welcomed.
it’s all fun and giggles until they tell us we’re gonna stay with titi lumy for a couple of days.
me and my brother were trained to keep secrets so we barely voiced our wants and needs. but we were vocal about not wanting to spend more time than required at titis. it’s BORING!
a lifeless place where the television volume had to be kept at the established volume- way too low for anybody, let alone puerto ricans! no cable. the radio could only play christian music. we weren’t allowed to play outside. and titi loves to makes us do things. get me water. bring me pills for my nerves. which, my brother and i knew so well since everybody in the family takes them.
the disappointment starts to show in our face and titi lumy goes inside her house to look for something. mami irma reassures us that this time it’s gonna be different; there’s surprises and the first one is about to take place. we literally bring up and down with joy upon seeing a pool! a plastic one, of course. to be placed on the patio. we’re gonna fill it up tomorrow morning!!! and it gets even better when we’re blinded by headlights. our cousin gio is staying here with us, too!
i wake up first, nightmares, of course, but the scent of microwaved hot dogs comforts me. and it excites me. and confuses me a little. we usually make breakfast! my brother, in his raspy morning voice, tells me to stop being paranoid so i do. he’s my kingdom come.
while we’re in the living room bickering over the ketchup, i hear titi in the kitchen asking what time the furniture we’ll be delivered. i turn into scooby doo. furniture? what’s going on?
titi comes in the living room with 3 cups of cold chocolate milk for us and an explanation. she’s bought a new bed so the current one needs to be switched to the empty bedroom. by us.
“i have a migraine,” she announces and goes back to the kitchen.
“te lo dije!” i say to my brother. “titi is being nice cuz she wants us to do something.”
we do as told, and do it well, encouraged by the pool filling up outside. we finish cleaning and moving then cleaning again. titi assesses, we’re allowed to change into our swimming shorts. titi starts cooking lunch. pouting.
the three of us are in the pool having the best time under the beaming rays of the taino sun.
we play sharks. we compete over who can hold their breath underwater the longest. playing marco polo in a 7 feet wide with 18 inches of water is fun when the game is really an excuse for our favorite thing to do: wrestle. my brother and giovanni take advantage of the furniture delivery to really go at it. me, not one to get in trouble, simply get out of the pool and dissapear into my walkmans.
it’s time to eat! titi makes us change clothes and sit to eat delicious rice and beans. we laugh. we joke. until she says we should take a nap. nap?! we protest! we refuse! but there’s no winning against those threatening eyes. and because we retorted, no tv! and, we gotta set up the mattress on the floor cuz the new bed is forbidden. ugh! it feels like she doesn’t need us anymore and wants to get rid of us so to the bedroom we’re sent.
nap? we’re too hyped. and i’m pretty sure we’re going to felicilandia tonight! i can feel it. something big is definitely happening! we whisper jokes and taunts and repress our laugh.
my brother and i, children of a paraplegic man, have an array of hand games to play and teach others about. but that only lasts so long so i’m ordered to intercede and ask titi for release. there’s a pool outside and it’s boiling in this room. we should be in the water!
30 more minutes then we can go back in the pool is titis compromise.
we’re sitting on the floor, crisscrossed, competing in burping competitions. until gio comes close to hurling. in the middle of our quiet laughter, i look at my brother. my brother looks at gio. gio looks at me. and we just do it. we start jumping on the bed. we start jumping on titis brand new bed!
with every jump, closer to god, bigger laugh. bigger giggle. the heaven of god truly is for children and i discovered it that day. for a second. BOOM. the bed breaks. the mattress is on the floor and titi at the door.
she’s shocked. dismayed. furious. unstable? titi starts to wobble.
gio and i remain standing on the mattress, holding back the white and gold bedframe that was just delivered. my brother goes to hold titi, sit her down, but the second he touches her,
titi starts walking backwards, shouting:
“ustedes! malditos niños! why would you do this to me? this is why i don’t like kids. you ruined my life!” taking off her rollers.
“my bed… my new bed!!” grabbing her hair.
“my bed..!” and
bam, bam, bam. titi’s bangs head against the wall.
again and again.
i don’t waste a second being shocked and frozen like my brother and cousin. i instantly conclude i can’t go to the neighbors- titi would hate me for letting them see her hair like this!
i grab a pillow and hold it between titi and the wall.
i order gio to get the hose and my brother to help me bring her to the shower.
literally kicking and screaming how much she hates us. i get the hose and aim it at her feet, softly, i press the handle. the shouting starts to subside. i pass it to my brother. gio at the door, pale skin and red freckles, motionless. i tell my cousin to get water, i get the pills.
i order gio to clean up titi’s room and for my brother to not leave her side. i think to call mami irma, but i don’t know her phone number!
we’re 8 and 9, we only know our dad’s digits and we can’t call him. he’ll freak out. and take us. and we don’t wanna go back!!! gio does. i tell him that he can’t call his mom cuz she’ll take our dad and then we’ll be taken to the house. pleaseeeeeeeeeeee, i beg. i’ll take care of it, he just needs to give me a little time to figure it out and BINGO!
titi has a phone book in her purse. i call mami irma and tell her what happened.
within 20 minutes mami irma shows up. titi’s in the bed passed out. my brother is dribbling a basketball anxiously and gio is listening to my walkman. first she checks on us, asks us if we’re okay. then she sees titi. then she assures us she’ll be fine and tells me how proud she is of how we managed the chaos.
on the way to mami irma’s house, where we’ll stay for the rest of our easter vacation, to make up for what we witnessed, i, in my shiest voice and ask if we’re going to felicilandia tonight.
“of course we are! what you did? you’ve earned it.”
