At eight I know that Mass has ended and my family will return soon to find I haven’t learned anything. But the phone rings before they arrive.

“Hello?”

“Isabel Moreno, please.”

“Speaking.”

“Isabel, this is Coach Alonzo. Welcome to the team.”

A Chance

A Chance

The coach says I have a lot to learn, but he thinks I have talent and potential. “You’ll be an alternate diver. That means you’ll practice with the team, but you’ll only compete when one of the other divers can’t. Next year, we’ll reassess how you’ve progressed. Are you willing to work under those conditions?”

“Yes, thank you, Coach.”

“You might not be thanking me at the end of next week. We practice six days a week, including Saturdays.”

Something stabs me in the pit of my stomach.

The store. Who will tend to the store?

“I’ll have to get back with you after I talk to my father.”

“Good enough. Let me know as soon as possible. By the way, Isabel, your great focus convinced me that you belong on the team.”

Fly

Fly

Tata hired Mrs. Cruz to work at the store every afternoon and Saturday mornings so that I can attend diving practice. He said it was okay if she sold her pictures there, too, as long as the subjects had fins or wore clothes.

I feel like I’ve grown wings and can fly. I want to soar through the sky and tell everyone my good news—Teresita, Roman, Delia and Tonya, Mary Kelly and Mrs. Johnson. But I decide to wait until Monday night, because more than anything on this earth, I want Frank to be the next person to know.

Growing Up

Growing Up

Tonight, Olivia tells me that she’s growing up. “I’ll be eight next week,” she reminds me.

I almost forgot. Our lives have been so busy these days.

“Tata says I can have a slumber party. We can pull our beds apart.”

Olivia doesn’t have to tell me that the reason she wants the beds apart is because she doesn’t want her friends to think she’s a baby.

I walk over to the bed. “We can do it right now.”

Her face looks panicked. “Wait,” she says. “Can we keep them together for one more night?”

I smile, happy that there’s still a part of her that doesn’t want to grow up. “Sure.”

And tonight I hold my baby sister tight and tell her a story about a pig that moves to Hollywood and becomes a famous movie star.

Golai Hagun Sune

Golai Hagun Sune

28 taro leaves1
7 cups of water
1 1/2 cups of grated coconut
4 tablespoons of lime juice
1 1/2 tablespoons of grated ginger
Salt to taste
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups of diluted coconut milk
2 big dashes of Tabasco sauce