Story – “Aura”

From My Daughter’s Eyes and Other Stories: “Aura was one of those women who was not family, but was family, and no one knew how. It took some time for me to put all of the pieces of the puzzle together and find the truth about Aura, but by then, she’d be gone to breast cancer like most of the women in my family.

My aunt, Tati says that Aura’s mother, Nene, was a spiritist, a psychic, a prostitute and my maternal grandfather’s mistress. On his death bed, my mother had promised him that she’d take care of his mistress, and she did. I am sure it was not easy, but my mother is generous like that. She made sure Nene came to New York in the 60’s when everyone had to leave after the overthrow of Trujillo, something the family never spoke of.

My family was like a book without previous chapters. They held the past at bay, kept it a secret from us. Illness was another one of those secrets too. When Nene died of breast cancer. A secret. When Aura died, another secret. I wonder if I too will hold secrets from my daughter when she’s grown, if I too hold the legacy of shame and silence, or if I will free myself of my past and share these secrets with her, but she is too young for me to share such things now. I keep these stories to myself, telling her only in small doses. When she finds Aura’s photo, I don’t know what to say. A family friend. A dear loved one. “

To read More:

Báez, A. (2007). My daughters eyes and other stories. Willimantic, CT: Curbstone.

Story behind the story:

Aura represents the women I have know how believed in spirits, in magic and who themselves represented it with their essence. They captivated my imagination and awed me with their power to heal.