Across the Great River

by Irene Beltrán Hernández

  “Anita,” I interrupt, “stay tonight.”

  Anita takes my wrist and upon it she ties a bracelet made of seeds. “What is this?” I ask.

  “Something I made for you. It’s a charm to ward off all evil. It has six seeds, three small red and white seeds and three very large red and white seeds. Wear it always, Kata. Now rest, for I must return the truck to Don Juan. Pablito waits on me, too. I am with you always.” She gathers her cloth bag and her bottles and bends to kiss me. “You will feel well in the morning, and so shall your mother. I have seen her, too, and have given her my tea.”

  The doctor leaves with Anita, but I can hear her as she carefully makes her way down the stairs. “Doctor Mendez, perhaps you should attend Mass more often,” she commands.

  He laughs, “And perhaps I should study medicine with you, Doña Anita.”

  “It might do you some good, my friend, not to mention the good it will do your patients,” she adds.

  “Nevertheless, I shall be watching Kata all night long.”

  “So be it,” she says.

  The following morning I awake feeling that I could run for miles and never tire and could jump the largest of rocks and never step on one. I can remember Anita tending me, but not much else.

  “Olga,” I say after entering the kitchen, “I am starved. I will eat anything.”

  She smiles, then feels my forehead. “Good, Kata, because you are the only one I have to cook for.”

  “Where’s Pilar?” I ask, taking a piece of toast.

  “She has not returned since yesterday. The doctor left me a note to pack her things up. I understand she called to have all her things sent back to her home in Mexico.”

  “Really! I am glad! Now he can be with Miss Nell like he wants to be!”

  “Is that what he wants?” asks Olga in a very interested voice.

  “Yes, and where is the doctor anyway?”

  “He’s been at the hospital since early this morning. They called him in for emergency surgery. That, added to your little problem last night, should make him fit for a couple of day’s sleep. She reaches for her saucepan. “Katarina!” she snaps, “stop eating all that butter or you shall become as fat as that old witch that visited you last night.”

  “She is not an old witch, Olga. She is my friend and I love her like a grandmother … even if she is fat and ugly.”

  Olga stares at me for a moment, then her face brightens as a smile breaks. “I don’t care what she is, as long as she did you some good.” She hands me a plate. You see, the doctor and I had late coffee together and he explained everything after she left. It seems he thinks a lot of her in a mysterious sort of way.”

  “Mysterious? What is that?”

  “It means that he likes her and respects her, but can’t really figure her out. You know, like you really can’t figure out all the facts about God.”

  “I see. Anita is very close to God, and she knows the devil, too. But she loves God enough to do his fighting against the devil.”

  “Oh, I would not like to be in her shoes!” Olga adds, then quickly crosses herself.

  I beg Olga to take me to see Mama that afternoon. She finally calls the doctor and he gives his okay. I find that Mama seems to hear me better. She slowly turns her head to me as if she can hear me, but can’t see me.

  “Mama! Hear me. Wake up, it’s me, Kata!” I repeat it again.

  “Give her time, Kata,” advises Olga as she changes the water on the stand.

  “Time. She should be awake by now. Anita said so,” I snap.

  “No one is perfect, Kata. Every person is different. If I’d been in your Mama’s shoes, I’d probably be sleeping until next Christmas.”

  “Next Christmas! I can’t wait that long!” I howl.

  “It’s just a joke, Kata,” adds Olga.

  “Mama!” I repeat. “Wake up, Mama.”

  As I study her face, a small smile appears and her eyes seem to move from one side to the other. She turns her head several times and then she blinks. “Kata,” she says after her eyes have cleared.

  “Mama! You’re awake at last! Oh, Mama, how I’ve missed you.” I hug her tightly.

  Olga immediately leaves the room and within seconds Doctor Mendez rushes inside. “Señora,” he says, “do not move until I have checked you entirely.” I watch as he examines her head, her eyes and the rest of her body. As he does, he talks in a soothing tone, “Kata is here as you can see, but Pablito is with Anita out at her rancho.”

  “I dreamed that Anita came to me last night,” whispers Mama. “May I have a drink of water?”

  He holds her glass and puts the straw in her mouth, then moves away from the bed. “Well, Kata, she is better. I believe the ice has finally been broken. Now, I can really work on getting her on her feet.”

  “Her hands are very cold,” I say.

  “That is expected, but remember her recovery is going to take time. I told you that once, but her waking is a very good sign.”

  “Mama,” I add, “Anita was here last night. I saw her myself.”

  A puzzled look crosses her eyes. “I dreamed she gave me a tea … a very sweet tea.”

  “She told me she did. Didn’t she, doctor?”

  “Yes, Kata, she did, and I believe her medicine is just as good as mine … sometimes, given the proper circumstances.”

  The door creeks open and Nell peeks around the corner. “May I come in?”

  “Sure.” The doctor rushes over to lead her in by the elbow. “We have great news. Kata’s mother is conscious.”

  “That is good, Kata,” she says as she approaches the bed.

  “Nell!” I hug her around the waist. “How I’ve missed you and Ramona.”

  Nell pats my back and gives me another hug. “We’ve missed you too, Kata.”

  I hear Mama sigh heavily, so I rush to her. “This time, Mama, please take better care of yourself.”

  “Yes, Kata. You are right.”

  I notice her voice seems small and distant. “Don’t worry about a thing, Mama. I’m right here and I will take care of you, and when Papa comes back, he’ll take care of all of us.”

  Tears wet her eyes. “Have you found Carlos?”

  “No, Mama, but we will. We have to,” I answer, smoothing back her hair.

  She clutches my hand and clears her throat again. “You sound sure of yourself, my little Kata. How you’ve grown since we left the village. You’re not a little girl anymore.”

  “I hate to interrupt,” adds the doctor, “but, she must rest. Kata, say goodbye. The nurse must tend to her needs.”

  “I’ll be back tomorrow, Mama.” I hug her, then follow Nell and Olga out of the room. Out in the hall I stop. “Hasn’t it been a perfect day?”

  Olga chuckles, “As perfect as can be!”

  Nell mutters, “The best ever!”

  I glance up to see that she beams like a rainbow in the heavens. “You do love him!” I shout happily.

  Nell stops walking, “Kata, you are a remarkable girl.”

  And Olga answers, “Very remarkable,” and they both laugh.

  Chapter Ten

  Doctor Mendez finally announces that Mama is well enough to go home. He arranges for a man to drive us out to the ranchito. “See to it that your mother rests, Kata,” he orders.

  Mama has been in low spirits all week long. I think it is because she feels she has failed in this new land. I try to cheer her up, but it does no good. Instead, it is Nell who is able to snap her out of it.

  “Señora!” declares Nell late one afternoon, “see what I have brought you.” She lays a large box on Mama’s lap. “Untie it,” she urges.

  Mama gasps in surprise. “New dresses for Kata and … and for me. You shouldn’t have done this. They must have cost you a lot of money.”

  “Doctor Mendez asked me to buy them for you and for Kata. He was the one that paid for them, but I chose them. You see, he seldom gets to go shopping. If you do not like one, tell me, and I shall return i
t for another.”

  “No, no, they are all beautiful. Thank you, Miss Nell.”

  “Thanks to Doctor Mendez. He has also paid the hospital bill for you and is not going to charge you a cent for his services. Isn’t that sweet of him?”

  “Yes, but why does he do all this for us? We have done nothing for the man but cause him problems.”

  “I believe we might safely say that Kata saved his life, right Kata?” she winks at me.

  “No, I just told him Pilar doesn’t like him,” I add, confused.

  Nell laughs and hugs me tightly. “What a girl you are, Kata.”

  Mama sits up in the bed. “When do we leave, Miss Nell?”

  Nell sighs. “I’m afraid it’s tomorrow morning.”

  I clap my hands. “Good. I will get to see Anita and Pablito soon, but I will miss you, Nell and Ramona.”

  “Well, we might go visit you now that Ramona knows where Anita lives.”

  “She does … how?”

  “Anita gave her directions out to the ranch. She went out there yesterday to speak with Anita about babies.”

  “Then, you shall be visiting us soon.”

  “I think very soon, Kata,” smiles Nell.

  I am glad to be going back to the ranchito. I will miss Olga and the doctor as I miss the gift of quietness that Anita’s place offers. But for me, our little village in Mexico will always be my home, no matter where I go or whom I meet.”

  The next morning I shake the doctor’s hand and give Nell a big hug and kiss. I hurry to the waiting car and wave to them as the car pulls out. I feel happy for them, but sad to be leaving them, also.

  As the ride lengthens, I find myself staring out of the car window. Silently I watch the hot desert pass before me. I sigh, “Mama, I would like to go home and see grandmother and grandfather.”

  “So would I, Kata. It’s been hard on us here. What would we have done without dear Anita? We owe her a lot.” She places her arms around my shoulders and kisses the top of my head.

  “Maybe Anita can help us get back home. Do you think she can?”

  “Perhaps, Kata. But I have no money.” She sobs. “I want to go back home and see my folks just as much as you do.”

  “We’ll find a way once you are better. I am sure Anita will help us.”

  Mama stops crying and laughs a little. “Ah, Kata. What a child you are. A true dreamer, just like your Papa.”

  I complain, “Yesterday you called me all grown up. Today I am a child again. I think you older people are the ones that are all mixed up! You change as quickly as the sun and the moon change places at night.”

  Mama laughs, “I believe you are right, Kata.”

  As we drive into the ranchito, Anita waves frantically, for she has seen us coming. She throws off her apron and picks up Pablito in her arms. Mama is right, I think, as I watch Anita tumble toward us. We belong to her, too.

  “Thanks be to the heavenly saints!” she cries. “You are both home safely.” She opens the car door to help Mama out. “Kata, my baby! Pablito and I have missed you.”

  I take Pablito into my arms. He pokes his fingers in my mouth and pulls my hair. “Ouch! You have not changed one bit, Pablito!” I scold as I take him over to the porch.

  Anita offers the driver a drink, but he declines, saying that he needs to get back to town as soon as possible. All four of us stand on the porch watching him disappear down the dusty road. Mama’s face seems pinched, as though she is seeing part of her life fade into the past, and upon Anita’s face I see a smile as big as a pumpkin while she pats her fat stomach in a very satisfied manner. I sit myself down on the porch steps and sigh, because I find peace in this barren countryside, except for Pablito who stands behind me choking my throat and pulling my pigtails.

  Anita must think that we are starved to death, because that evening she fixes a huge supper of enchiladas covered with cheese and onions, beans, rice and tacos. She also has a surprise for us … cold tea.

  “Anita,” I ask “how did you get the tea this cold?”

  She giggles, “I outsmarted myself, no?”

  “Yes, you did, Anita. Now tell us how,” asks Mama.

  “I sealed the tea in a big jar, put it inside the bucket that belongs to the well and lowered it into the cold well water. I let it stay there all day. See, I felt you would be coming home today.”

  “That’s a great idea, Anita. I shall always remember that.”

  “Have you heard anything about Carlos?” asks Mama.

  Anita puts down her plate of food, then sits herself in the chair opposite Mama. “I have asked around. But as yet I have not heard a thing. I left word at several places for those two scoundrels to get back with me.”

  “Yes, perhaps they know something of him,” responds Mama.

  “Anita,” I interrupt, “do you think you could help us get back home?” I watch as she stiffens. “I mean find a way to get us back to Mexico.”

  She sighs, then speaks slowly as if she is thinking hard. “I think we could get you back across, if that’s what you want.” She glances at Mama with lowered eyes, not wanting her to say what she knew she had to say.

  Mama answers just as cautiously, “It’s just that we are so unfamiliar with the American ways and customs. In Mexico, our village life was so simple and happier.” She puts her hand on Anita’s shoulder. “I hope I have not hurt you by wanting to return.”

  “No, I understand why. I live out here for the peace of mind it brings me, for I am a free person, and thus it should be with your little village home.”

  I interrupt again. “I really want to go home. I’ve even lost my Anna and I don’t now where,” I wail.

  Anita throws back her head and howls in laughter. Her breasts shake and her bad eye blinks, “Poor Anna! I found her in the room all alone. So I stuffed her in a sack and brought her back here.” She rises quickly and goes over to the closet. “See, here is poor Anna.”

  I scream as I reach her and I crush her to my chest, then hold her at a distance to examine her dress, which is wrinkled but not torn. “Anna, you’re home, too.”

  Mama rises and puts her arms around Anita. “I think we are all ready to go back home. Do you think you can help us?”

  I look up from smoothing Anna’s dress. “If we need money, we can sell the pretty stone.”

  “What stone?” asks Mama turning sharply toward me.

  “The one that was in the pouch.” I lift my skirt and undo the pouch.

  Mama’s eyes bulge out. “I thought I had lost that pouch!”

  “No, I had it all the time, Mama.” I hold the pouch upside down and the stone falls into my palm. “It’s a little pretty isn’t it, Anita? Maybe we can get three or four American dollars for it.”

  Anita takes the stone from me and holds it to the light. “Maybe so, little one.” She softly whistles and turns to Mama. “Do you know what kind of stone this is?”

  “I never have seen it, but I remember Carlos putting something in the pouch before we left the village.”

  “It was in the pouch when we got to the river. That man that Papa handed the money to saw it also. I know he wanted it because he asked Papa about it.” I put the pouch down on the table. “Anyway, I’m glad that I do not have to wear that old thing any longer. It scratches me.”

  Anita chuckles, “I have a close friend that knows about rocks and stones. I will take it to him tomorrow. Perhaps, he can help.”

  Mama shrugs, “So be it, señora.”

  “It may bring a good price. Enough, perhaps, to get you back to your village.” Anita turns to the bed and pulls down the blanket. “If you go back, I will come visit.”

  “Anita, you can come any time you please.” I kiss her hand. “After all, you found Anna.” I take my doll to our straw bed and play with her until Mama turns out the lantern.

  The next morning Anita sets out to her friend’s house. “I will be gone all day. I should be back a little after dark. If I do not return, it is because they have a
sked me to stay for the night. So, do not worry, for I will return the following morning.”

  I watch her bulky figure sway back and forth as she walks off into the distance. Soon she is a tiny speck against the tan horizon.

  “Kata, feed the chickens. We have to help Anita with her work,” says Mama.

  “All right, Mama. I’ll take Pablito so that he can learn how to do it.”

  When I glance back up the road, Anita has disappeared.

  Two days pass and Anita has not returned. Mama is sick with worry and so am I. We have no idea where she has gone and with each minute that passes Mama bites harder on her fingernails and I walk one more time out to the porch to look down the road.

  After lunch on the third day, Anita bursts through the screen door. “Heavens!” she pants. “What luck!” She breathes heavily, but undoes her scarf, as if she were opening a surprise package. She flings her shawl upon the back of the chair as if it were a dishto-wel.

  “Anita! Where have you been?” scolds Mama.

  “Never mind. I go several places, not just one. My friend told me he thought the stone to be a gold nugget, but maybe it could be fool’s gold, too. He was not all that sure, so he sent me to another of his friends who is a jeweler in town. He said it was real and offered to buy it right off.”

  “You’re telling jokes, Anita. Where would Carlos get a gold nugget?” questions Mama standing with her hands on her hips.

  “I don’t know. But I do know that it is real. The man bought it without questions.” She flops her cloth bag on the table. “Look!” She jerks open the bag and rolls of green money flow forth.

  “Anita!” shouts Mama, “where on earth did you get so much money?”

  “I just told you. Weren’t you listening?” she cries. “It’s all yours. The man bought the gold nugget for $600 American dollars.”

  “Bless all the saints! Kata, now we can go back home!” screams Mama for joy as she lifts me into the air.

  “Yes,” beams Anita like an old lantern. “And with enough money to buy a piece of land, some cows and some chickens. Perhaps even open a store in your village.”