How Tia Lola Saved the Summer

by Julia Alvarez

  Colonel Charlebois is expecting them. He has a tea tray all laid out in a room he calls the parlor.

  “Sit down and make yourselves comfortable.” Colonel Charlebois gestures toward an assembly of stiff-backed chairs.

  The invitation is easier said than followed, as the furniture proves to be very uncomfortable, like you are sitting at attention. The air smells musty. The house is not haunted—Cari doesn’t have to be looking around with big spooked eyes—but it is dark and sad and somber, a house that never gets to hear kids laughing or arguing, dogs barking, never gets to smell potatoes being fried up or a cake baking in the oven.

  The mood seizes Essie in a way she didn’t expect. Now she wants Colonel Charlebois to adopt her so she can come up here and throw open the windows and paint the walls bright colors and replace the furniture with beanbags and puffy couches you can fall into while watching a big-screen TV. That would be the first thing Essie’d buy, as the small one in the corner probably doesn’t even have a remote control. But mostly, Essie would sit down with the sad-looking old man, as she does now, and ask him a whole bunch of questions about when he traveled around the world and what he had to do to become a hero.

  “That was a long time ago.” Colonel Charlebois waves her questions away at first. His hands are so shaky that the little teacups rattle violently when he picks them up to pour tea in them. Tía Lola very tactfully intervenes. “Just so you can talk, coronel.”

  “It’ll bore you all to tears, then you’ll never come back to visit me. Now go ahead and eat some cookies.” The old man has such a bossy way of talking. Nobody would think of contradicting him.

  Except Essie. “If we thought we’d be bored to tears, we wouldn’t be asking, now would we?”

  The colonel’s jaw drops. Essie can hear the little click of his old dentures. Then he is laughing so hard, it brings on a fit of horrible-sounding coughing.

  “I can see you hit them back not only in baseball,” he says once he has recovered. There’s a sparkle in his eye and a smile on his thin lips. Even with his bad cough and his heavy sweater-vest in the middle of summer, Essie can see that the old man is already feeling better with the company.

  Soon the colonel is launched on a journey down memory lane, taking three rapt girls and a delighted Tía Lola along. The room is transformed into a Korean jungle, a Japanese temple, a Saharan desert, shark-infested waters off the coast of India, the high seas where pirate ships prowl in search of friendly vessels, and submarines slice the darkness fathoms beyond where sunlight ever reaches. Now it’s Essie’s jaw dropping with wonder.

  Upon Cari’s request, Colonel Charlebois gives them a tour of the house. They end up in an attic storeroom with a closet full of old mothball-smelling uniforms hanging in a row and boxes stuffed with what the colonel calls memorabilia and a bunch of medals. There’s also a dragon mask from China, a snake charmer’s basket from India, and a ceremonial sword in a fanciful scabbard with a tassel, given to him by a Japanese official whose family used to be samurai warriors.

  “Awesome!” Essie says. “It’s like another Excalibur!”

  “What’s an excantaloupe?” Cari asks.

  Essie sighs with impatience. “Excalibur is like the most famous sword in history. It belonged to King Arthur.”

  Cari doesn’t know who King Arthur is either, but she’s not going to ask Essie another question and be made to feel even dumber.

  “So, can I hold it?” Essie asks in a breathless voice.

  “Of course,” Colonel Charlebois says, unsheathing the beautiful weapon. As Essie strikes a pose, Colonel Charlebois laughs. “By the way, am I mistaken, or did I see that you yourself had a sword sticking out of your backpack?”

  Essie is so mesmerized by the sword, for once she doesn’t speak right up.

  “We all have them.” Juanita has been trying to get a word in edgewise since the visit started. “Tía Lola gave them to us.”

  “They’re supposed to be magic and help us with a … a …” Cari can’t remember the word Papa used. Something about girdles.

  “Help with a challenge,” Tía Lola explains. “Like when you, Cari, needed extra courage, or you, Juanita, needed to feel like you were especial.”

  “Those are certainly valuable swords if they can accomplish so much.” Colonel Charlebois sounds impressed. “This one is only good for murder and plunder.”

  Essie finally cedes the sword so Cari and Juanita can also hold it and strike poses and imagine themselves as samurai warriors. The afternoon begins to turn to evening. By the time they are ready to leave, it really is too late to ride their bikes home.

  Colonel Charlebois comes up with a plan. “How about I give you all a ride now, and then tomorrow, I’ll pick you up, and you can ride your bikes back home? I get a second visit out of it.”

  “But your cold, coronel,” Tía Lola reminds him. He really should not go out with a cold in the damp evening air.

  “Nonsense! I’ve never felt better in my life,” the colonel says gruffly. “What’s more, I’ve had one of the most entertaining afternoons of my life, and I wouldn’t mind repeating it. Now, the sooner we get in the car, the faster we’ll get there.” It’s like he’s still in the army, barking out orders. Watching him, Essie wonders whom he reminds her of. And then she realizes: me!

  Soon another treat awaits her: Essie has been hoping to ride in Colonel Charlebois’ wonderful silver car as big as a tank. The hood ornament is a little silver batter from when the colonel was part of an army baseball team in Panama, called Los Dorados. They won so many trophies, each player got to take one home. The colonel put his on his new Cadillac Eldorado, which he bought precisely because it had a similar name as his team. They heard all about his posting in Panama this afternoon. That’s where he picked up his Spanish.

  Like a gentleman, Colonel Charlebois insists on holding the door open for everyone. But before getting in, he remembers something he has to get in the house. Whatever it is, it goes in the trunk, and then he’s back, turning on the car. The engine sounds a little like it is having its very own coughing fit. Away they go, Colonel Charlebois telling about some championship game in Panama when the bases were loaded and he was up to bat. “Ever been south of the border?” he asks Essie.

  “I was thinking of riding my bike all the way to Florida,” Essie confides.

  Colonel Charlebois is intrigued. So Essie elaborates about being a hobo and not having to attend school and getting to go to Disney World, since plane tickets for her whole family are too expensive. The colonel listens carefully, like he is just as enchanted by Essie’s stories as she is by his.

  “What made you change your mind?”

  How does Essie tell him about the million dollars she was hoping to inherit from him? How if she was on the road without a cell phone, the lawyers couldn’t reach her to give her the news? The last thing in the world Essie would want to do is hurt the colonel’s feelings by mentioning something as rude as his death. He’d think she was eager to visit and listen to his stories only because she wanted his money. For the second time in an afternoon, Essie doesn’t have a whole lot to say.

  “I guess I changed my mind on account of I’d miss my family too much.” Once she says so, Essie knows it’s the truth.

  “Wise choice,” the colonel says thoughtfully. “One that sometimes I wish I had made. But that’s neither here nor there. We make our beds and we have to lie in them.”

  “It’s never too late to buy a softer mattress or change for a bigger model!” Tía Lola reminds him, laughing.

  They pull up to the house, already wrapped in that soft haze of a summer evening. Colonel Charlebois agrees to stay for dinner. By the time he is ready to leave, it’s already dark. He asks Essie if she wouldn’t mind accompanying him to the car. He has something for her in the trunk.

  Essie’s heart soars. She is going to get a gift from Colonel Charlebois, without him having to die first!

  When Essie shines the beam of her treasure-hunt flash
light into the trunk, which the colonel has thrown open, she can hardly believe her eyes. The samurai sword in its elaborate scabbard! “For me?” she gasps. But a second later, her heart plummets. Papa will never let her accept such a precious gift. He’ll think that, Essie being Essie, she must have hinted that she sure could use a samurai sword down in the dangerous streets of New York City.

  “I can’t,” she has to admit sadly. “Papa’ll make me give it back. He thinks we’re imposing if people give us stuff.”

  “We won’t call it a gift, then,” Colonel Charlebois suggests.

  Essie can feel the skies of possibility opening. Like when a roller coaster climbs slowly, with effort, and you know once you get to the top, you’re going to plunge down, but that means you’ll soon be swinging back up in a wild, wonderful arc of a ride. You need the down part to make the up part so thrilling.

  “Let’s just call it a trade.”

  A trade? But Essie doesn’t have anything as special to exchange for a genuine samurai sword.

  “Didn’t you say you had a magic sword?”

  “But it’s not really, it’s just a plastic—”

  The colonel shakes his head. “If Tía Lola says that sword is magic, then that’s guarantee enough for me. Lord knows I have a bunch of challenges I need help with right now, including this cold. So, what do you say, is it a swap or not?”

  Is this really happening? Essie wonders as she races back to the house to retrieve the sword from her backpack. Before handing it over, she says, “Thank you, sword, for granting my wish.” She did not inherit a million dollars or get to play baseball instead of Miguel, but she is now the proud owner of a genuine samurai warrior sword. She has also had a magnificent day and made several new friends. True to her name, Esperanza has everything she could hope for.

  Eight

  thursday night

  and friday

  Mami’s Mistake Monster

  It’s been another packed evening: dinner with Colonel Charlebois, a campfire with songs and s’mores. The kids and Tía Lola have all gone up to bed.

  Mami and Víctor linger, sitting on the deck, the lights from the second-floor bedrooms shining down on them. It’s their last opportunity to talk privately before more guests arrive tomorrow.

  Papi and Carmen and Abuelito and Abuelita will all be staying in the house—Mami caved in to keep everyone happy. Papi will sleep on the pullout couch in the den, and the girls all together in Juanita’s room, freeing up the guest room for Abuelito and Abuelita. Carmen is delighted to share a room with Tía Lola. It will be a hectic couple of days, what with the big game, meals, visiting, before the guests all leave on Sunday.

  Maybe that’s why Victoria has been drawn to her window, already feeling so wistful about their departure. She has wished on a star and kissed the blade of her sword several times for good luck. What else can she do? She really hopes Papa will decide to relocate to Vermont. But each time the Swords have brought it up, Papa has replied, “It’s not just up to me, you know.”

  On the deck, below Victoria’s window, an interesting conversation is unfolding. Victoria wouldn’t dream of snooping, but then she hears the magic words “move to

  Vermont.” She hushes Cari and Juanita and Essie, who are jabbering away in the room behind her. They hurry to the window, curious to see what has caught the eldest Sword’s attention.

  “I just think we need to put the move to Vermont on hold,” Linda is saying. She and Víctor met only three months ago. Since then it’s been a whirlwind of phone calls, a previous visit by Víctor, and now this visit with his girls. “I just worry that everything is moving too fast for the kids. A divorce. Then their father getting engaged. And your girls, too. It’s a big change from New York City to Vermont. They’ve been through so much in the last few years.” Mami sighs as if she herself is out of breath with how many things have been happening. “I think we all need to slow down a little.”

  “But I don’t want to slow down.” Papa’s voice sounds so sad, as if Linda has just given him a death sentence. “I don’t get it. I think the kids are doing great. Are you sure it’s not you who are having doubts?”

  “Not at all!” Linda says so vehemently that Victoria can’t help feeling relieved.

  Her father must be relieved, too. He reaches for Linda’s hand. “What’s this?” he asks, lifting her hand to the light. Linda is clutching the sword Tía Lola gave her as if for dear life.

  “I needed some help talking to you,” Linda admits, trying to laugh it off.

  “Please don’t worry,” Papa says. “I wouldn’t move up here if I didn’t think it was the best thing for everybody concerned. And I promise not to put any pressure on you. I’ll wait for as long as it takes you. Only one favorcito.” A little favor.

  “What is it?” Mami sounds afraid to ask.

  “I want you to use your magic sword to slay the monster.”

  Essie and Juanita can’t help giggling. Victoria silences them with a look. But she has to admit that it is kind of funny to hear her rational lawyer papa talking about slaying monsters. It’s also funny to hear him telling someone else not to worry. Papa, the big worrier! Maybe there’s something in Vermont’s water that has brought about this marvelous change in her father.

  “So what monster is it you want me to kill?” Linda is asking.

  “The monster of making mistakes. After something doesn’t go well, we sometimes get scared of trying again.” Papa can be so wise sometimes. “You’re probably a little afraid to fall in love again. But you have to get past that monster. And the children will all follow your lead, I’m sure. In fact, they might even help you slay the monster if you ask for their help.”

  Essie’s shoulders are almost up to her ears as she struggles to control her giggles. She nudges the giggling Juanita, who nudges Cari. But Cari doesn’t think any of this is funny. She has been getting increasingly scared by all this talk of monsters. “I don’t get it,” she whispers in Victoria’s ear.

  “I’ll explain later,” Victoria whispers back.

  “Is it a real monster?”

  Victoria shakes her head. But her sister is still looking petrified, so Victoria sends her and the two gigglers on an errand before they ruin everything. “Go upstairs and get Tía Lola and Miguel. We need to have a summit meeting, pronto!”

  “Ay, Linda, I’m sorry,” Papa is apologizing. “I shouldn’t be hurrying you, much as I’d like to. Every heart has its very own clock. I’ll tell you what, think about it in the next couple of days. If you still feel the same way on Sunday, I will respect your decision. We’ll slow down, put the move to Vermont on hold for now. A year, two, as long as it takes. But”—Víctor grabs her hand with the sword in it—“I want you to give us a fighting chance.”

  Papa has taken the sword from her hand and is whipping it in the air.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Warming it up to slay that mistake monster,” he jokes.

  “You think this plastic sword will do the job, eh?” Mami sounds playful but also doubtful.

  “If not, I know where I can borrow a genuine samurai warrior sword.”

  They both burst out laughing. “Shhh,” Mami hushes them both. “The children are sleeping. Shhhhhhhh!”

  Oh yeah? The children are now all assembled in Juanita’s room for an emergency meeting. Victoria briefs Tía Lola and Miguel on the situation and adds the information about the Sunday deadline.

  “That’s so unfair!” Essie is beside herself. “First we don’t get to go to Disney World. Now we don’t get to move to Vermont.” Her gloomy side is back. The glass is not half full, it’s almost empty. The roller-coaster ride will never, ever go back up again.

  Her older sister won’t give up so easy. “Come on, Essie. We have until Sunday.”

  But Sunday is only two days away! “So what do you propose?” Essie says, hoping against hope that someone will come up with a solution.

  “I have an idea, I have an idea!” Juanita pipes u
p. She explains that earlier today at Stargazer’s shop, she bought something called a mood ring. She already showed it off to Cari and Essie and Tía Lola. “You put it on and the stone changes colors to show your deepest, most secret feelings. See, like right now, it’s kind of red?” Juanita unfolds the little piece of paper that came with the ring. Oh no! Red means she is anxious and stressed. But actually, that makes perfect sense, given that Juanita is worrying about Mami. If the stone were to turn violet, it would mean romance, passion, marriage. “So, what if we get Mami to wear it tomorrow? Then we check at dinner and see if she’s really in love. What do you think?”

  Miguel thinks it’s the craziest thing he’s ever heard of. Wouldn’t Mami already know if she loved or didn’t love someone?

  “But maybe your mami isn’t sure she really loves Papa as much as he loves her, you think?” Victoria ventures. She would not want her father to get hurt for anything in the world. “I’d hate for your mother to get hurt, too,” she adds. Sweet Victoria. Not wanting anyone to be unhappy. Growing up is not going to change her.

  “But how are you guys going to get Mami to wear the ring?” Miguel asks. They are so rah-rah with the idea, they’re forgetting this minor logistical detail.

  After a moment of consideration, the girls turn to Tía Lola. “Please, por favor, Tía Lola,” they plead. “You are our last, our only hope.” They clutch their hands like damsels in distress. Tía Lola keeps shaking her head and repeating, “Everything will be fine, trust me.” But finally she can’t resist the pleading damsels. “Okay, I’ll get her to wear it.” She takes the ring and slips it on. In a second, the stone gleams pure gold!