A Visit with the Grandmothers

 

Manifesting the Ancestors

“When we illuminate the road back to our ancestors, they have a way of reaching out, of manifesting themselves…sometimes even physically.”

Raquel Cepeda (Bird of Paradise: How I Became Latina)

          I’ve been writing about things found in a box in the hall closet—photos of my past life, my children when they were young, our pets across the years. In the very bottom of the box, I found a small stationary box containing letters from my grandmothers written in 1967. It felt like discovering King Tut’s mummy surrounded by jewels. I sat for over an hour at my kitchen table reading and rereading and hearing their voices in the words.

          I have always thought I am most like my mother’s mother, Mama, who died when I was only 23, and now I know why. In one letter she describes how cold it is, snow on the ground and how much she hates winter because it keeps her cooped up in the house. In summer she could get outside in her garden and watch folks on the campus (Carson-Newman) going about their business. She said she would just have to take up her sewing to get through it. Oh, yeah, I can relate!

          Toba Beta in his book, My Ancestor Was an Ancient Astronaut, said, “You are the fairy tale told by your ancestors.” At the time these letters were written, I lived in Sacramento, CA, while my husband went to flight school, and I tried to finish college. I was the first of my family to move so far away from home, and apparently, I wrote lots of letters. Mama was effusive about getting two letters from me in one week and how much she and Popa enjoyed reading them—sometimes many times. The envelopes showed a P.O. box, #202. I remember the post office well, and sometimes it still shows up in my dreams. This generation will likely never know how exciting it feels to peep into a P.O. Box and see a long anticipated letter from their grandmother or their sweetheart in there, and that’s a loss.

          This time of year—Christmas—feels like a thin time. The ancestors are close and want very much to be part of our festivities. As Raquel Cepeda says in the quote above, sometimes they reach out and manifest themselves in unexpected ways. Like letters from the past in the bottom of a box forgotten for decades. She also wrote in Bird of Paradise, “Individually, every grain of sand brushing against my hands represents a story, and experience, and a block for me to build upon for the next generation.” I had a visit with my grandmothers yesterday and I loved every minute of it. I hope yours pay you a visit this holiday season. Be sure to tell their stories to your children and grandchildren. They need to know that they too are a fairy tale.

                                                  In the Spirit,

                                                  Jane