Unbroken

Life is precious and time is fleeting. We have to appreciate the moments as we live them; before they become memories and reminders of what once was. We spend much of our time planning for life and not enough time living. We live like we will always have more time, as if time is a resource that refills itself. It isn’t. We spend time thinking about tomorrow, next week, next year and all the years to come and let the present pass us by.

If I could turn back time, I would relive every missed opportunity to spend time with abuela. I would take her hands in mine and trace back every tender touch of love they created, every meal of salvation they prepared, every broken heart they mended, every child they held, every novena they prayed. I would cuddle up in her embrace, lose myself in her warmth until the world disappeared.

Abuelas have a way of making time stand still. They carry their dreams, their mother’s dreams, their grandmother’s dreams and make it possible for us to manifest our own. From the hallowed lands of Puerto Rico to the cracked asphalt of tenement building stoops, their spines be the bridge that carry us from this life to the next.

I still remember the gleam in her gray eyes when she laughed, the gratitude she wore on her face whenever I asked her for her bendicion and the love she poured into every tasa de café she made me. She was strong — shielding five finger…