A Rarámuri Family's Flight from Drought and the Drug Trade
Luis received the first coins he had ever held. “Keep these safe,” the man said. “You’ll need them.”
Give thanks even when you find the smallest gift. Give thanks even when you find a stalk with only a bulb at the end. Remember: Sometimes promises take time to reach us. Remember: All our lives are in the hands of Onorúame, who gives us blessings but also takes them away.
la tierra que Onorúame nos dió a los Rarámuris.
korima.
Between 2010-2014, Victoria Blanco collected the oral histories of Rarámuri families living in Chihuahua City, Mexico. She is completing a nonfiction book based on the oral histories and her field research. Her research and writing have been supported by Fulbright, fellowships from the University of Minnesota, Coffee House Press In-the-Stacks, the Minnesota State Arts Board, and the Loft Mentor Series. She received her MFA from the University of Minnesota. She is a Mexican-American writer from El Paso, Texas. She lives in Minneapolis with her husband and two sons.
Enter your email address to receive notifications for author Victoria Blanco
Success!
Confirmation link sent to your email to add you to notification list for author Victoria Blanco
More by this author
A Family on the Border, of the Border
I see a wall as tantamount to rejection: to create a physical barrier is to reject the possibility of familiarity.
Why We Cross the Border in El Paso
I felt my mom’s grip tighten around my hand as dozens surged across the Rio Grande, the water waist-high. Adults held children in their arms or carried them in rebozos across their backs.
More in this series
All the Things I Thought About When We Were Naming My Nephew (aka A गुलाब by Any Other Name; aka Song for Kian)
“How will non-Indians pronounce it?”
Immigrating From Yugoslavia Was a Struggle and a Privilege—Both Can Be True
As her family saw it, my mother’s life in London was one of comfort. But she also struggled. Both of these things were true.
My Parents’ Country Doesn’t Exist. I Moved There Anyway.
I was enjoying what exists of this place today—be it Croatia or Yugoslavia—without the need for comparison.