The Distance Between Us

Two weeks before Christmas, the postman delivers a package to Evila’s house; Elida assures them that the package is, as usual, for her. This time, however, the package is addressed to Mago, sent by their parents.

Reyna and her siblings open the package and are thrilled to find presents—identical dresses for Reyna and Mago, along with shoes, and jeans and a shirt for Carlos. However, all of the clothes are a size too small. On the one hand, Reyna is desperate to wear the clothes; on the other hand, she is angry that her parents don’t know their clothing sizes. She wonders what else their parents don’t know about them and what they might not know about their parents. Reyna understands only later that “the distance between us and our parents was destroying our relationship more than any of us could have imagined. And the consequences would be great” (57).

They decide to wear the clothes outside, “laughing and crying at the same time […] Our neighbors admired our new clothes […] not knowing that by the time we got home our feet would be covered with blisters” (57).

Reyna relates the details of her father’s dream house and shares some details of his life. He has worked in construction for years, building homes for other people, and finally ends up in Los Angeles, doing maintenance work for a retirement home. Reyna, with her mother gone for two years and her father for four years, is elated to see that construction on their family home has begun: “Back then, I interpreted this to mean one thing—Papi and Mami would soon be back!” (59).

Evila has promised Papi a piece of land to begin construction, but Reyna later learns that this would be a mistake, as the property is not legally in her father’s name. Nonetheless, workers arrive and first tear down the old bamboo shack and outhouse, and soon begin building the foundation and the walls. Reyna and her siblings help by carrying mortar and gravel to the site: “we would tell ourselves that the faster we worked, the faster we would have a family again” (60).

Eventually, however, construction stops; Evila tells them that there is no more money to continue building. Mago claims that “the house would never be done because it was just a foolish dream, just as silly as our dream of having a real family again” (60). Distraught, Reyna pleads with The Man Behind the Glass—her father’s photo—asking when he will return.

Reyna wakens in the middle of the night, calling out in pain for her mother. A scorpion, caught in the collar of her dress, has stung her. Tía Emperatriz treats her with folk medicine, using rubbing alcohol and raw onions, then asking her to swallow a raw egg to reduce the strength of the venom. Mago tells Evila that they need a doctor; Evila replies that there is no money. Tía Emperatriz lets Reyna sleep in her bed, promising to take care of her. 

Still sick the next morning, Reyna is dizzy and nauseous: “I felt like I had a guitar inside my head […] vibrations sending waves of pain that bounced inside my brain” (63). Tía Emperatriz, who has taken the day off work, insists that Reyna see a doctor; Evila, claiming that she is too old to take care of her grandchildren, provides some money, and adds that Reyna’s parents will never return.

Reyna receives medical treatment and, that night, sleeps again in Emperatriz’s bed. She begins to think of Emperatriz as a mother figure but wants to resist this feeling, telling Mago that although she tends to them and shows them affection and attention, it “doesn’t mean she could take Mami’s place” (66). Also, both Mago and Reyna are uncomfortable with the knowledge that Emperatriz has a boyfriend, as they are afraid of losing her.

On Mother’s Day, Reyna has to make a card for her mother at school but struggles emotionally to do so. She also recalls a particular phonics lesson, having to write “MI MAMÁ ME MIMA. ME MAMÁ ME AMA […] My mama spoils me. My mama loves me” (67). On the verge of tears, she rearranges the statement into a question: “Does my mama love me?” (67). Later, the children offer presents to Emperatriz, but with some hesitation from Reyna. Emperatriz displays the presents on her nightstand. Before going to bed, Reyna can’t resist running to hug her and to thank her.

Reyna’s mother returns to Mexico, along with baby Elizabeth. Reyna in particular is shocked and confused, uncertain how to react. Only after encouragement from Emperatriz does she approach her mother: “I hesitantly wrapped my arms around her waist, and I let her hug me with one arm” (71). The children learn that they will now be living with their maternal grandmother, Chinta. While Reyna feels uneasy leaving Emperatriz, she also resists expressing her fondness for her in her mother’s presence. 

On their way to Chinta’s house, their mother says very little and ignores her crying baby. Chinta’s ramshackle house, Reyna notes, is: “made of bamboo sticks […] covered with cardboard soaked in tar” (72). Reyna and her siblings ply their mother with questions about Papi, about life in America; they want to know if their parents missed them, but their mother ignores them and tells them to play outside. She also asks Mago to take care of the baby; Mago refuses, so she asks Reyna: “She put her little girl on my lap, and I did as I was told. I didn’t want to watch this little girl. But Mami was back […] and it was better if I behaved or she might decide to leave again” (74).  

Reyna looks forward to the family eating together and gets more comfortable with the baby, but she then learns that her mother doesn’t want to see her father again, as he has found another woman. Their mother calls them back inside, and Carlos says he’s glad that now everything will be as it was before, but Grande notes: “Carlos was wrong. The woman [Reyna’s mother] standing there wasn’t the same woman who had left” (76).