Elvira’s ringNobody’s perfect; this ring is missing a few stones. It is still a precious link between present and past between me and the one-of-a-kind “aunt” Elvira.Elvira was there to welcome me home when I was a new baby. She helped shape my childhood until her cancer tried, failed, then finally succeeded in taking her away from us forever. When the treatments made her fingers so thin that she was afraid to lose her ring in the hospital, Elvira gave it to my mom for safekeeping.One day, my parents went to visit the hospital and discovered Elvira’s room was empty, bed stripped. She disappeared when she died, because her family expressed their wishes on her behalf. We do not know where she is buried, but we feel her presence in the ether and remember her frequently. When a coincidence comes about that brings a tough situation together with a good resolution, my dad says, “Elvira is at work taking care of us again.”

– Nicoletta LaMarca Sacco

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