On a breezy day, I ran towards the kitchen as sneakily as my five- year-old self could. Reaching the kitchen where my grandmother had been cooking all day, I started towards the glass bowl full of Masa, and stretched out my tiny hand towards the big bowl. “ No dear, that's for the Cuachala” said my grandma, having just caught me trying to take some masa,“ But why?”I asked as she took the masa bowl and placed it next to her so I wouldn’t get any, “today we’re going to make cuachala for the family and we need the masa in order to make such a big amount, if not what’ll we eat ?” I didn’t understand much, but looking back I understand,Cuachala is something that is made when we have special occasions, especially in my pueblo back in Mexico, which is where this occurred.Cuachala is the traditional dish of my pueblo, it represents our ancestors and it’s a way to stay connected to them, a celebration of what they have given us, and what we will continue to give.From a young age I had always wanted to learn to cook Cuachala, the distinct smell of the tomatoes and chile guajillo put were the most amazing part of making cuachala,and although I wanted to cook this, my grandma said I could not make the dish until I was older. Once I was 15 years old, my grandmother came to the US and I again asked if she could teach me how to cook the dish, and instead of saying no, she agreed. My grandmother wrote down the recipe and had me help make cuachala with her.I’ve learned to understand why this dish is so significant to my family, and I hope to pass it down to the next generation of my family.

– Mixtly

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant