Mama M. regaled my folks with the family history, which was right up my mother's ally. Back in the 70's while working on her Ph.D., the latter had collected oral histories of people in South Texas who had come to El Norte fleeing the Mexican Revolution and its consequences. Mama M. had pretty much the same story to tell. She was only two at the time her parents left, but she knew the family tale. Papa was away selling horses when some soldiers came into town. Mama M.'s mama fixed them a meal, and was consequently spared having the house searched for guns, which could have been big trouble, considering that she had told them there were none when, of course, there were. El Capitan told his men, "No, you leave that house alone. She was good to us." But when Papa came back home, Mama announced that she had had enough of that kind of thing and said she was ready to book it for El Norte. And so they did, eventually making their way to Idaho as farm laborers.
To top things off, one of David's sisters had gone on pilgrimage to San Juan de los Lagos, asking to survive her cancer long enough to see her children to adulthood. The milagro was granted. Mexican Revolution and pilgrimage... my parents, and especially my mother, were as happy as little clams. Mama M. served pound cake and coffee.
In other news, I believe I have found the perfect dress. Whether or not a pattern approximating this could be fashioned and executed without too much trouble remains to be seen, but by golly, this is what I'm talking about -- for the party, at least.
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