It was a Sunday afternoon, which meant, as usual, dinner with my family. The sky was a pure blue as the sun shone like a spotlight on my grandparents’ house.
Every Sunday dinner is the same. Peel, taste, talk. Stir, taste, talk. Bake, taste, talk. Mix, taste, talk louder. Since the adults in my family talk at the same time, I don’t think anyone has noticed that no one is listening!
Illustration by Anna Maria Crum © 2007. This illustration may not be copied or reproduced without permission
My grandparents are from
Puerto Rico
. When you live in
Puerto Rico, your life revolves around two things: family and food. My favorite food is Nana’s rice and beans. My favorite dessert is flan. My favorite person is my aunt Kami.
She is my mom’s oldest sister, but she acts just like the kids. She wrestles outside with us while we play football. She blocks us when we play basketball. She sings louder than anyone when she hears music. She’s so much fun! Yep, every Sunday is the same: family, food, and fun with Aunt Kami. Every Sunday, that is, until last Sunday.
Last Sunday Aunt Kami got calls on her cell phone while we were playing dodgeball. Then she got more calls in the middle of dinner. She got up from the table at least three times to talk on the phone. My nana didn’t like it one bit. Her eyebrows pointed down, and she crossed her arms until Aunt Kami hung up the phone. Aunt Kami blushed and sat down to start eating again without saying anything about the phone call. While the women cleared the dinner table, Nana took the towel from her housecoat pocket to dry some dishes. She turned to Aunt Kami.
“Kami, who are you talking to, mi’ja? Who is so important?” Nana asked. Dishes clanged as we scraped food from the plates.
“Yeah, Kami. Who’s the special man?” my mom added while she turned on the hot water.
“There is no man.” Aunt Kami took a sip of her iced tea.
My mom, Nana, and my other aunts started to laugh. “Yeah, right! You don’t blush like that and smile from ear to ear when you are just talking to a friend.”
Aunt Kami crossed her arms and said, “Really. There is no man. She’s a woman. Her name is Hope. She’s my girlfriend.”
There was a sudden silence in the kitchen. I have never seen every woman in my family speechless at the same time. Aunt Kami’s face turned really red, and she wiped her forehead with a paper towel. She looked over at me and gave me a half smile. Even though she was smiling, I could see tears in her eyes. I didn’t know what to say. My stomach started to feel funny. I had a feeling I was going to be sick.
“Why are you crying, Aunt Kami?” I asked.
“What do you mean—‘girlfriend’?” Nana asked.
“I mean I’m gay, Mamí,” Aunt Kami replied. “I have never been in love like this. I love Hope the way you love Papí and the way my sisters love their husbands. She is so good to me.”
For the rest of the afternoon, the women in my family talked to Aunt Kami about Hope. They argued over whether or not to tell Papí, but they could not keep it a secret any longer. Aunt Kami called him into the kitchen and told him. He told her, “Nonsense. You will find a husband; just keep looking,” and returned to the living room to sit in his armchair. He didn’t say much for the rest of the afternoon.
“Will we get to meet her?” I asked later.
Aunt Kami took a deep breath and looked over at Nana. “Next Sunday, can we eat Sunday dinner earlier? I would like to bring Hope, but she works on Sunday afternoons, so we would have to leave early.”
“Mi’ja, I don’t understand. A pretty girl like you will find a husband—don’t give up. Hope is just your friend.” Nana kissed Aunt Kami on the forehead and crossed herself.
“Bring your friend. We’ll eat early.” Nana’s smile looked fake as she wiped her hands on her apron.
That brings us to today. I can’t believe my favorite aunt’s girlfriend is coming to dinner. As I took the plates out of the cabinet, Nana yelled from the other room, “Don’t forget to set an extra place for dinner.” How could I forget? In the kitchen the women were peeling, stirring, baking, and mixing as usual, but there wasn’t any time for tasting or talking. They had to rush to get dinner on the table since Aunt Kami and Hope could only stay for a little while.
I heard the front screen door creak open and slam closed. This was it. They were here. The kitchen work stopped, and everyone gathered in the front hallway. Still silent. Nana, Papí, aunts, uncles, cousins, my parents, and I all waited to greet them. Aunt Kami came around the corner, holding Hope’s hand. Papí made the sign of the cross across his chest and said something in Spanish, throwing his arms into the air. I guess seeing Aunt Kami and Hope holding hands was too much for him to handle. He went upstairs and didn’t come back down. Nana smiled, but it was the kind of smile that seemed to hurt her face.
She turned to Hope and said, “It is nice to meet you. Welcome to our home. You will have to excuse my husband; he isn’t feeling well today.”
Hope looked nice. She smiled at everyone, and my mom hugged her. Aunt Kami looked so happy as she made the introductions. “Hope, this is my oldest niece, Parker,” she said, then whispered, “She’s my favorite.” She knew that would get a smile out of me.
Everyone rushed to get the food on the table and find a place to sit. We didn’t get to play dodgeball with Aunt Kami before dinner. That was no big deal. Aunt Kami wasn’t there to mash potatoes with me—even though it was our job every Sunday. That was no big deal; they were just kind of lumpy. Aunt Kami was finally here, and at least I would have my regular seat beside her.
As I looked at the table, I saw that Hope had taken my seat! Now the sick feeling in my stomach had turned into a bunch of words I couldn’t hold in any longer. They went from my belly to my chest, through my throat, and out of my mouth like a train that can’t stop.
“That is my seat, and you guys are rushing dinner. You guys are gay, Aunt Kami didn’t play with us, and the potatoes are lumpy. THIS IS A BIG DEAL!” I stood in the doorway of the dining room with my fists balled up and my jaw clenched. Everyone stopped and looked at me. I knew I shouldn’t yell like that, but I couldn’t help it. I ran upstairs to the bathroom and locked the door.
“Parks, open the door. I want to talk to you.” Aunt Kami’s voice was gentle and calm. I opened the door and then went over to the corner to sit on the hamper.
“Listen,” she began, “I don’t expect you to be okay with all of this. I know it’s a big change. I’m still getting used to it, too. I just want to you to understand that I’ll always love you very much. I’m not by myself anymore, and maybe Hope can join in the things that we do together. She loves to play football and basketball. She can’t cook, but don’t tell her I told you that.” She always knows how to make me laugh. “It’s okay to feel weird about everything right now. I just ask that you come to me if you have questions. We’ll figure things out together.”
She held out her hand and asked if I could come back downstairs. She wiped the tears from my cheek and brushed my hair from my face. I followed her back to the dining room.
I couldn’t even look at anyone after acting like such a baby, but I did feel better. I sat on the other side of Aunt Kami. I started to fix my plate. Aunt Kami patted my knee.
“Could you pass the potatoes?” Hope asked me. “I love my potatoes lumpy.”
I smiled but still didn’t look up as I passed the lumpy mashed potatoes. This was definitely not an ordinary Sunday dinner, but I could give it a shot, for Aunt Kami.
