A Storm of Messages

CONTENT WARNING: This story includes the death of a loved one.

Hola mijo,

It’s me. Your mother. Just leaving this message to tell you that I love you and to have a good day. Remember that we have your nephew’s birthday this Sunday. And he’s 14, not 4, so don’t buy him another stuffed animal. He stopped playing with stuffed animals years ago. Ok. Love you. Bye.

Hi Mom,

It’s me. Your son. Thanks for the unnecessary reminder about Tito’s birthday. And, I know he’s 14. I just like fu…screwing with him. It’s fun. I always get him a real gift, so don’t you fret. I made some chile con carne for dinner. It’s not as good as yours, but Brenda said it was pretty good and you know how mean she is, so. I’m pretty proud. You’ll get to try some when you come home this evening. Be safe driving. Love you.

Hola mijo,

It’s me. Your mother. You were asleep when I got home, but your papi and I tried your chile con carne. Not bad. Needs salt. But not bad. Brenda isn’t mean. She’s honest. And you should value that. You need someone in your life who always tells you the truth. Sisters are good for that. When I’m gone, she’ll be the one to watch out for you. So. Treat her nicely. And what gifts are you getting Tito that I’m not seeing??!! He’s 14, not 44!

Hi Mom,

It’s me. Your son. You were already gone when I got up this morning. Gracias por las huevos. Delicious. Brenda ate most of them and left me a really small, teeny, tiny, portion. She said I didn’t need more than that since I’m a gordito. She’s mean and I’m not sure why you didn’t just leave her at the hospital when she was born. Are you sure she’s yours? Are you sure you got the right kid?! Seems to me like a DNA test is in order. And I’m glad you liked the chile con carne, but yes, it needed salt. It always needs salt. This family will overdose on sodium if we’re not careful. And Tito is gonna be 15. He’s a man now. Let him live. Love you.

Hola mijo,

It’s me. Your mother. Remember what I said about Brenda being honest? That’s all I’m going to say about that. And yes, she is my daughter. And she is definitely 100% your papi’s daughter. She gets all her sass from him. And salt makes things taste good. You want things not to taste good? I don’t think so. And, Tito, my grandson, is not a “man.” He’s 15. Still a niño, so whatever nasty gifts you have in mind, just stop. Don’t be a cochino…I was thinking this morning about why we started doing this. These messages. It’s the reason we stopped going to church, you know? I don’t know if I ever told you that. But yes. We stopped going to church because I didn’t want to waste an hour not spending time with you and the rest of the familia. I missed you too much during the week to not get to spend a full day with you on Sunday. Sometimes I worry that God is mad at me for that, but your father thinks that God is understanding. Is any man understanding? I’m not quite so sure, which is why I pray to La Virgen instead. I feel like she has my back. Anyway. Can’t wait for Sunday when I get to squeeze you and Brenda, who yes is your biological sister, and Marcos and Tito, and even Marcos’ novia Norma. Even Norma. Love you. There’s a little bit of arroz con pollo in the fridge, in the back behind the watermelon. Eat it before Brenda does.

Hi Mom,

It’s me. Your son. So, you think I’m a gordito? You’re always telling me to, “Comé! Comé, hijo! Estás mas flacito!” So, are you lying? Hmmm?? God doesn’t like liars, mother. I’m just kidding. God could never not like you. You’re the best. Really. And I’m not just saying that cause I’m your son. You are. Everyone thinks so. Even Brenda. We always talk about how amazing you are. How we can’t believe the amount of energy you have. Working all day, six days a week, and on Sundays, your one day off, what do you do? You get up at the crack of dawn and make a giant delicious meal for us. For everyone. You clean the house. You blast your cumbias so that me and Brenda can get our asses up and help too. And you’re dancing when we wake up. Dancing at 6am on a Sunday. I don’t know how you do it. So, now you have this on record and can use it against me, ok? You’re my idol, mom. You really are. And these messages? They’re the highlights of my days. Brenda’s too. We love you. Thanks for the arroz con pollo, but Brenda saw me eat it, so now she knows that you saved some for me and not her. So, expect an angry message from her soon. And, Norma? You need to stop calling her Marcos’ “novia.” She isn’t his “novia.” She’s his “esposa.” They’ve been married for six years. And, Norma’s pretty cool, mom. You just don’t think that anyone is good enough for your children.

Hi mijo,

It’s me. Your mother. Next time I set some food aside for you, be better about eating it when your sister isn’t around. She gave me an ear full with her last message and told me that I love you more than her. Which isn’t true, by the way. I just love you differently. And boys need more than girls. You’re weaker. Norma is fine. She could use some cooking lessons but she’s fine. Talk about someone who needs to use salt! Any novias you wanna tell me about? Hmmm? And thank you for what you said. It’s been…well, everything is fine. It’s just hard sometimes. For me and your papi. But we’re fine. And we love you. And I can’t wait for Sunday.

Hi Mom,

It’s me. Your son. No novias. But to be honest, I probably won’t introduce any girlfriends to you. You’ll meet the one I’m going to marry and even then, we’ll see. I know how you are, so. You know. We’ll see. Brenda has a boyfriend. She’ll kill me for telling you, but I don’t care. She keeps hiding my stuff for her own amusement and rubbing it in my face that I’m the “weaker sex,” so I’m gonna tell you her secrets for my own amusement. Hah! And, you know, if you or papi ever need help, I could start working. Just saying. Love you.

Hi mijo,

It’s me. Your mother. I better meet all of your girlfriends!! Don’t test me, hijo. And Brenda? Tell Brenda that her papi wants to have a conversation with her this evening. Completely unrelated to this supposed boyfriend…Anyway. Your work is school, so just focus on that and if you get B’s again this semester, your papi is gonna have a conversation with you too. We expect nothing but A's from you. Be careful going to school this morning. I heard there’s going to be a storm. It’s supposed to be pretty bad, so keep me posted, ok? Love you.

Hi Mom,

It’s me. Your son. No B’s. Promise. And girlfriends? Uh, we’ll see about that. They let us go from school almost as soon as we got there because of the storm. We’re home now. It’s really coming down. Call me back to let me know you’re ok, please. Love you.

Hi Mom,

Are you ok? They’ve been announcing flood warnings near your factory. Call us please. Love you.

Hi mijo,

They’re not letting us leave. They’re saying that if we leave we’ll get fired. I tried calling your papi but he’s not picking up. If you hear from him, have him call me. And don’t worry! I’m ok! I’ll call you when I’m leaving.

That’s not ok that they’re not letting you leave! You need to get out of there. Now. Papi just got home. He’s trying to call you but you’re not picking up. Call us back.

I’m on my way out now. Tell your papi to-

Please answer your phone.

Please answer your phone.

Ok, we’re going to head toward you and try to meet you. Call me if you can, please. Please? Love you.

Hey mijo,

It’s me your mom. I don’t know if this will go through. Reception has been in and out. I’m stuck on the road and…I love you. Not sure if I’ll have time to call your sister or your papi but tell them I love them too. I love you all so much. I-