¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
¡Güerita! the chef shouts across the restaurant. ¿Que quisiera ordenar?
Una orden de tacos de trompo, por favor.
I hold a small flour tortilla between my index finger and thumb. The juice from the pork seasoned with smoked paprika drips slowly as I near this delicacy to my mouth and a little bit of salsa drips from the taco unto the plate.
Red plastic tables and chairs surround me, and there’s a bottle of Coke for every person in the place. It’s 4:00 a.m., and people talk, dance, and laugh. The sky is dark, but the streets are alive.
At tacos Foco Amarillo, it’s never too late for dinner or too early for breakfast. The noise and amount of people make it seem like the day is young and the night is long.
Some are in their pajamas, and others are in high heels and makeup; people are kissing, and others are fighting; drunks stumble in from the streets, a wholesome aura in the place, and everything seems trouble-free.
To be at Foco Amarillo late at night (some might even call it early in the morning), surrounded by people of different ages and socioeconomic backgrounds, eating tacos and drinking coke—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
My great-grandmother, Mane, is lying in her bed; she says, Doy gracias a Dios que sigo viva. By 4:00 p.m., six of her children, twelve of her grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren accompany her in the living room. It’s an ordinary afternoon, and this is not even half of the family, only the ones who felt like visiting on a Monday.
There’s movement and chatter. Mane is wearing her hearing aid, but she pretends that she’s not—she does this intentionally so that she can choose which conversations to participate in and which to avoid.
¿Escuchaste lo que le paso a Chachi’s? one Uncle asks. That sets the conversation in motion for hours because everyone in town knows each other, and Mane loves to gossip—for these types of conversations, her hearing aid is always on.
I sit along my mamá, my grandmother, Tita, and Mane—four generations in the room—and make myself comfortable because I know afternoons like these end only when the sun has gone down and dinner is served.
To gather alongside an abundance of family members on a regular Monday afternoon, talking nonchalantly about anything and everything—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
It’s 2018, the World Cup is on, and Mexico is playing against Germany. We know their chances of winning are slim, but the whole country dresses in green and red. For a while, the streets are quiet because everyone is watching the game.
Suddenly there’s an uproar, Mexico has scored a goal, and now we’re up by one. There’s disbelief and excitement; we might not win, but at least we scored.
When the time is up and the whistle blows, Mexico has won. Mexico has won against Germany—one of the best soccer teams in the world.
Immediately the streets get busy, and the country gets loud. Cars are honking; people are out celebrating—everyone agrees to have a drink and some tacos because Mexico has won.
Being humble in the face of challenge, finding hope where others would not, and finding every little reason worth celebrating—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
When November comes around, I help my mom put a mantel over a rectangular table in the living room and set up picture frames of all our loved ones who have passed. We decorate the table with flowers, candles, and candy—things that remind us of the people who are no longer with us. The table has no trace of grief; bright colors fill it because we celebrate the lives of those who have died instead of grieving their loss.
We find beauty even in the saddest things—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
I get a flat tire in the middle of a lonely road. Not two minutes pass, and already four people have approached me. I know none of them, but they’re all willing to spare some time to help me change my tire. “No te preocupes de nada, nosotros nos encargamos.”
To trust in strangers, to be surrounded by people who are genuinely kind and pure at heart—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
Emilio gets diagnosed with cancer for the fourth time. It’s 7:00 p.m., and the whole town is at the local church offering a rosary prayer for him.
Old and young, family and friends, we cry, hug, think of Emilio, and pray. We know the chances of survival are slim, but we trust God. Through our prayer, we fight.
This goes on for a year until he passes, and when he does, the whole town sticks together; we cry, hug, think of Emilio, and pray.
To have faith even in the most turbulent times, to gather and pray for others—that’s what it means to be Mexican.
***
¿Que significa ser Mexicano?
Oh, to be Mexican. To be able to enjoy the spice and turn the sorrows into beauty. To have a heart that believes in miracles despite their impossibility. To sit next to four generations of family and talk about nothing and everything. To feel a country united. To believe in the power of the people and their kindness. To feel intensely and love profoundly. To see the world through innocent and hope-filled eyes.
That is what it means to be Mexican.
Discussion Questions
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What images and descriptive details do you remember most vividly after reading Prestamo’s essay? Why do you think those images and details are memorable?
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Who do you think the target audience is for this essay, and why? What might this essay offer to readers who are also Mexican, like the author? What does it offer to those readers who are less familiar with “what it means to be Mexican”?
Author
