family

I’ve been thinking about two things lately: my daughter’s name and her linguistic environment.  When we named her Marisol, we intentionally chose a Spanish name, including that rolled “r.”  We knew it would be butchered often, but loved it anyway and it became her name.  Her middle and last names are also very clearly Latino names as well.  Throughout our days, though, I wonder if her name will make her feel out of place, or self-conscious because it is soRead More ...

I have what could be considered a textbook American family on my dad’s side of the family:  one aunt and uncle, two cousins, a few great-aunts, great-uncles, and other more distant relatives I’ve gotten to know to one degree or another.  On my mother’s side:  seven aunts and uncles, more cousins than I can count, and I couldn’t keep track of my extended family without a seriously detailed family tree. People have tried to convince me that in Latin America,Read More ...

Tita was mi Abuelita.  She was a vivacious, loud, loving bull of a woman.  She lived with my family since before I was born, and until she died when I was 16 and she was 83.  We slept in side-by-side twin beds until my brother moved out when I started high school.  Late at night, we would talk about nothing and everything–she would teach me Spanish prayers and make the silliest jokes that made us both giggle.  When my fatherRead More ...

For some reason I can’t even explain, I’ve always said Thanksgiving is not a holiday I feel connected to…until now. You see, even though I’ve never hosted a Thanksgiving feast, I’ve always attended one. It’s usually over at my sister’s who loves to entertain and always has the best and most delicious concoctions for any feast. This year, however, she’s not around and for the past couple of weeks, I’ve had this strange feeling, a kind of empty feeling everyRead More ...

!Feliz Día del Padre! I hope all of you have plans to celebrate your fathers and grandfathers! We’re not doing much, just hanging out in the backyard, bbqing, taking advantage of the fact that Summer has finally arrived to Colorado! Well in case you missed it, NBC’s Today Show dedicated a whole week to a series of issues facing the Hispanic community. Check out some highligths in the links below… ...