Comments on: Things We Carried http://latinousa.kut.org/2009/02/13/things-we-carried/ Radio Journal of News & Culture Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:53 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: J. Rolando Flores http://latinousa.kut.org/2009/02/13/things-we-carried/comment-page-1/#comment-25 J. Rolando Flores Tue, 24 Feb 2009 13:04:02 +0000 http://latinousa.kut.org/?p=1759#comment-25 I immigrated to the US in 1982 from Guatemala; my family's response to the wave of "desaparecidos" of the early 80's. My madrina, a very devout catholic, had a tradition of praying on her knees at midnight of the new year, while peeling a mandarin. She then gave the mandarin skin to the men in the family for them to place in their wallets. "It will bring you good fortune" she said. I was 17 when I moved to the US, and that was the first time that she included me in the recipients of her "prayed-upon mandarin skin". The fruity fragrance in my wallet (which lasted the life of this wallet) always reminded me of my Godmother. But I also know that she and her prayers had a lot to do with where I am now. J. Rolando Flores I immigrated to the US in 1982 from Guatemala; my family’s response to the wave of “desaparecidos” of the early 80’s.

My madrina, a very devout catholic, had a tradition of praying on her knees at midnight of the new year, while peeling a mandarin. She then gave the mandarin skin to the men in the family for them to place in their wallets. “It will bring you good fortune” she said. I was 17 when I moved to the US, and that was the first time that she included me in the recipients of her “prayed-upon mandarin skin”. The fruity fragrance in my wallet (which lasted the life of this wallet) always reminded me of my Godmother. But I also know that she and her prayers had a lot to do with where I am now.

J. Rolando Flores

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