Questions I should have asked sooner

Going through that box of family stuff again, and this time I found something that stopped me cold.

Questions I should have asked sooner

Tucked behind Abuela Rosa’s recipe cards were these letters - actual letters, in Spanish, with dates from the 1960s. Her handwriting, but talking about people and places I’ve never heard her mention.

I can make out enough to know these aren’t just friendly updates. There are references to someone named Miguel who helped with “the crossing,” and mentions of staying with family in El Paso that she’s never told me about.

The handwriting tells stories I never knew existed

The more I read, the more I realize how many gaps there are in the stories I think I know.

I’ve been so focused on learning her recipes and techniques, thinking I was preserving our family history. But I’ve been collecting the what without understanding the why. These letters are showing me there’s a whole chapter of her story - our story - that I’ve never even asked about.

Time to have some real conversations. Not just about cooking methods or ingredient substitutions, but about the journey that brought all these traditions to our kitchen in the first place. Some questions can’t wait forever.