Entry Numero Tres

“Back Home” – Yellowcard

            I find myself sitting in the office at Sofia’s house while the rest of the house sleeps safe and sound.  It seems that unlike previous years we have “gathered at Fifi’s house for Christmas” (59).  She seems happy with the arrival of her new baby boy, but exhausted at the same time.  I have missed my sisters and parents very much.  The last of one of our group, Yolanda, finally arrived just two days ago. 

            Sofia has been keeping me closer than normal.  She talks to me constantly and makes me laugh when I’m close to crying which is quite often.  I put her through quite a scare when I started losing weight, but now that I’m better she seems to be joyful all the time.  The other day she took me out for coffee and told me about her worries and fears especially those of being a new mother.  The two of us being together again has been a gift from God. 

            The other night Carla, Fifi, Yolanda, and I stayed up late in the night and talked for the first time in years.  Although when Carla and Yolanda started getting irritated, I noticed Fifi panic which is unusual for her.  I then realized that “this is the first time the family has gathered together in a year” and completely understood her reasons for calming them down and attempting to keep the peace (60).  Other than that little bump, we have been inseparable since we arrived here.  I feel young again just like when we first moved to New York and spent all our time together because we knew no one else.  It’s a comforting feeling to know that after all of our fights and arguments that we still love each other so much. 

            It is different than the years that we’ve grown up with each other.  We are all changed women because of the challenges that we’ve had to overcome during the past years.  I can see that behind the happiness in each set of eyes that there is a fear in all of us, but only when one of us is left to think for quite some time.  It seems to happen less and less frequently since we’ve arrived at Fifi’s house and maybe we are all healing from our past pains and tribulations.  Maybe it’s true that love does really heal all the past scars especially the love of one’s family, like my own.  All I know is that I will always be part of the Garcia Girls. 

“With or Without You” – U2 (As performed by SCALA and the Kolacny Brothers)

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Entry Numero Dos

“Just Couldn’t Tie Me Down” – The Black Keys

            Hello College! This new and wonderful experience is exciting and to top it off I’m almost through my first semester and if anything it has been uplifting.  Carla has introduced me to her friends and has taken the time out of her social life to show and guide me around this crazy world.  I never thought that it would be this hard to adapt to living life on your own, but it is.

            Oh! Who am I kidding? College is a blast and I absolutely love every minute of it.  I have some great friends who take me parties and show me the ropes of this wonderful environment.  The people, the parties, the places are all so overwhelming.  Carla and I often keep “most things from the old people,” but every once in a while we let our guard slip and they get a glimpse of something that they’d much rather not see (110). 

It’s a wonderful life here, although I do miss Fifi.  I’ve yet to find someone that can replace her which is probably a very good thing.  She has come to visit only once and we went out, so that she could experience a taste of the college life.  Needless to say the next morning our “room was hushed with sleepiness” (67).  We always have a great time together and I am very excited to see her especially since Christmas break is only a few days away.  I have so much to tell her, but for now I just keep it myself. 

I am especially taken to my classes.  I have never been so enamored with any of my previous classes, but the ones here “speak” to me. I find myself especially drawn to books.  I was never much of the reader when we lived in the Dominican Republic, but now I can’t seem to put them down.  When I’m not out (which actually is very rare) I find myself in my room reading books and working on school work.  All in all college life seems perfect.  I feel like I belong here.  

“Perfect Timing (This Morning)” – Orba Squara

http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/cheesy-chicken-bacon-avocado-quesadillas.html

-          When I miss Mami’s cooking. 

Entry Numero Uno

“The Boys of Summer” – The Ataris

            Before I knew it, the last summer of the Garcia girls had arrived and just like the prior years we were once again being sent back to the island.  “The night before the trip, we sisters stayed up late packing and gabbing” (111).  It was our tradition so to speak, the four of us would sit in Carla’s room because she is the oldest and we would spend the hours talking about our Dominican family. 

I remember slipping away from the girls for a while to call my boyfriend who happened to “live in Palo Alto” (113).  For once I refused to care about the possibility of getting in trouble with mother for the phone bill expenses.  It seemed like I cared about someone just as much or equal to the amount to the love I held for my sisters.  I loved my sisters dearly, but when it came to my boyfriend it was a close tie.  They knew I loved him, especially Fifi.  Sofia understood why I chose to hang out with him during the school year rather than other girl friends.

This summer was different though.  I could feel it when I heard his voice on the phone that night; I knew that I was getting older which meant no more controlled trips to the Dominican.  Summer was a time of freedom, but how great was our freedom when we weren’t able to spend it with someone we hold close to our heart?  Our relationship was different than other fickle high school relationships.  I think this was the reason that Mami didn’t understand why we girls put up such a fight when it came close to the “Great Sending Off.” I remember thinking that the Dominican Republic was no longer home for me.  Neither was it home for Carla, Sofia, or Yolanda.  Our hearts belonged to America and the possibilities it held for Señoritas like us. Occasionally Sofia would have this hope of going back to the Island just to see whether she really missed it, but I was “afraid that Fifi” would not return the same girl, but instead turn “into some nice third-world girl” (118).  It’s not that we didn’t love our family we just didn’t want to go back to the way things were.  We had come to love who we were and who we were going to be, so why go back to a place that would only hold us back?

“Dream On” – Aerosmith

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