Thursday, November 1, 2012
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My Abuelita had the best laugh in the whole world. It filled the room. She was also a very giving person. She spent the majority of her sixties and into her seventies donating her time to a variety of kindnesses. She led singing sessions at the Farwell rest home. She offered rides to anyone who needed them for doctors appointments. She gave pedicures and cleaned houses. The phrase I heard the most growing up was "That Mati is good people". In her youth she was a maid, a singer, a dancer, a tree climber and a feisty waitress. Even if you never understood a word she said, you were charmed. She was also a shyster of the highest order who wasn't afraid to pretend not to speak a word of English when it benefited her. I also witnessed her haggle at yard sales like a gangster :) She always looked so tragic saying, "I only havva two dollars. You take it?" They'd sigh and give in and she'd pull the money out a wallet packed with twenties. She was the luckiest person I've ever met when it comes to gambling. She'd walk into the Casino with $20 and walk out with $300. She was brilliant and scheming and funny and infuriating. She was both the happiest and saddest person I've ever known. She made do with her life here, but her heart was always in the Canary Islands. I hope wherever her soul has landed, the bananas are fried, the beaches are white, the water is blue and all her brothers and sisters are there, watching her climb the palm trees.
That Mati, she was good people.
