LA MORENITA, Chapter 28

Four days later, they entered Washington state. As they crossed over the bridge that connected Oregon and Washington, he spoke. “Look at the Mighty Columbia River, will you? We’re within striking distance now. Richland can’t be more than thirty or forty miles from here.”
M couldn’t put into words what she was feeling, but she knew it was wrapped in a sense of irony. The wide expanse of white-capped waters rushing below them, the sky as blue as robin’s eggs and white clouds as thick and puffy as marshmallows, and the cheery “Welcome to Washington” sign at the halfway point on the bridge all seemed as pleasant as a Walt Disney cartoon. So why was she filled with such a sense of gloom?
They reached Uncle Joe’s house on Stevens Boulevard at about three that afternoon. Aunt Eunice must have been looking for them because she came out immediately to greet them. Grinning, Eunice approached the car on the passenger side, but she and her smile both froze as she saw M sitting there.
As M looked back at Eunice she noted how cold the woman looked when she stopped smiling. Tall and slender, with her hair pulled back in a bun, the woman had a thin, straight line for a mouth and eyes the color of translucent cough drops.
As N exited the car on the driver’s side, Eunice came around and hugged him. “We were all so worried,” she crooned. “We weren’t sure when you left, and then, of course there was all that news about that awful tornado.”
“Tornado?” M repeated. “What tornado?”
“Oh, you know,” Eunice said. “The one that hit around San Antonio. It destroyed a bunch of homes and killed some people.”
“Can I use your phone to make a long distance call?” M asked.
“Why sure. I’ll show you where it is.”
She got out of the car and rushed up the steps behind Eunice. When Eunice opened the door, M almost beat her inside. Eunice pointed toward the phone, but before she could speak, Maria had snatched the phone off the cradle and was dialing. She let it ring thirteen times. No answer.
She replaced the phone on the cradle and immediately snatched it up again. The phone rang seven times before M’s oldest sister, answered.
“Bueno.”
“This is Maria. I called Mom and Dad’s but no one answered.”
“Ay de mi! They’re dead, Maria. They were killed in the tornado.”
“Dios mio!” Maria sobbed, crossing herself. “I knew something was wrong!”
“But you left anyway, didn’t you? To be with your gringo husband.”
“Please, have pity on me!”
“I told you something would happen if you went away. The funeral’s tomorrow.”
“Oh, no! It can’t be tomorrow! I can’t make it by then.”
“What does it matter to you? You’re no longer a member of this family anyway.”
Consuela hung up.
#
Araceli closed the notebook, lay it on the stand next to her bed, turned off the light and went to sleep. The next thing she remembered was walking down to the riverside path to wait for the raven. She was pretty sure it wasn’t a dream because she could smell the fresh river water and the wet black dirt on the bank of the river. She sat down on the bench and listened to the soft sounds of the river passing by. She waited fifteen minutes, taking note of the fact that no one else could be seen at the riverside path or anywhere else within her view. Then the raven flew in and landed on the back of her bench. “All finished,” Araceli announced in a weary voice.
“Read it to me,” the raven ordered.
Araceli obliged the raven by reading the remaining pages aloud.
“Is that all true?” the raven asked.
“Yes. I believe it is.”
The raven spread her wings.
“Wait a minute. Where are you going?”
“Now that you’ve finished writing the story of your parents’ lives, you don’t need me any more.”
“But what if I do need you? How do I let you know?”
“I’ll know. And I’ll come you as I came to you this time. In your dream.”
“This is a dream?”
“Of course it is. And to you, it is probably the greater reality.”
“And you will come to me if I need you?”
“If you need help, the right person will be there for you.”
“But not you?”
“I came to show you your gift” said the raven. “You have that gift now. If you need further help, you will receive it.”
“But what do I do in the meantime?”
“Just boldly follow your passion. If you need help, someone will visit you.”
Araceli watched the raven fly up into the air. She followed the raven even after it was only a dot in the sky. When she could no longer see the raven, she got up and went home. This can’t be a dream, she thought. It’s too real.