7/27/2026

I’m not a religious person

I was as a little girl

Made sure to pray every day, in both languages-

Just to be sure

Where I come from, it holds a certain importance

A child’s soul cannot be saved if she is not baptized

It is a communal rite of passage

So important your skin hasn’t even adjusted to the air before your coated in holy water

I was 6 when I was baptized

“Ya estás grande”, I remember them saying

I recall the shame for something I didn’t quite understand

I didn’t understand the weight of it then

I don’t mean the religious weight

I’m referring to my grandmother’s determination

She spent 6 years advocating for my soul…

6 is just about the cutoff age for, “La afusión”

My feet didn’t grow for “3 years”

Obviously, an exaggeration

But stemming from some truth

Because of this my grandparents were able to carry me

They both held me as the priest poured the water on my forehead

And up my nose… mostly

My grandparents aren’t just my grandparents

They’re also my Padrinos

I’m not a religious person

But before I could even understand

My grandmother taught me my soul was worth saving too…