• CONTACT US |
    ×

TYTT Volume 8

Sounds of home
Sounds of Home 1024 683 LA County Library

Sounds of Home

The roll call of names flowed from the merchant’s lips as Antonia and the girls rushed to the village store where women and children gathered for news from El Norte. Inside, the village’s unofficial postman drew envelopes from a pouch. read more
a leaf in the wind
A Leaf in the Wind 1024 683 LA County Library

A Leaf in the Wind

Facing the box camera, Antonia sat motionless alongside the man, 10 years her senior, whom she’d promised to obey and to hold from that day forward. read more
Illuminated bridge
Warrior Daughter 1024 683 LA County Library

Warrior Daughter

In the last years of my mother’s life, I had dedicated myself to helping keep her alive. I wanted to study engineering and aviation. Yet our Mexican–Catholic culture kept me stuck in servitude as I took care of my mother instead. read more
mabes dream
Mabe’s Dream 1024 683 LA County Library

Mabe’s Dream

There was something really peaceful about driving through this mostly rural area on a wide-open two-lane highway. The sky was blue with specks of pollen from springtime blossoms spiraling through the air. read more
end of the dance
End of the Dance 1024 683 LA County Library

End of the Dance

I was in my mid-20s when I landed in Barcelona. A yearlong relationship with Mariano, a chemistry PhD student from Spain, led me to leave UC Santa Barbara only a few months from graduating with a BA in Spanish literature. It may have seemed a dumb idea, but I had other plans. I was on a quest to find myself through a new career as a belly dancer. read more
buddy and dean
Buddy and Dean 1024 683 LA County Library

Buddy and Dean

In 2012 I was hired as part of a program to provide outreach services to the homeless of Hollywood. It was our job to find the most vulnerable individuals on the street and to work to get them into housing. Not long after we began, we found a panhandler at a gas station near Griffith Park. read more
birds
Birds 1024 683 LA County Library

Birds

Nobody here understands what I say. They just look at me funny when I ask them which way is home. At school, the kids sing songs that sound like they could be Chinese. I try to sing along, but I can’t make out the words. read more
La Curandera
La Curandera 1024 683 LA County Library

La Curandera

It is 3 a.m. and I am lying on a cot in the bathroom of my grandmother’s hospital room, listening to other family members snoring away. Angie has been unresponsive for a few days and my family is keeping vigil. I know her end is near, but I can feel her presence, still hanging in. read more
desert sea
Desert Sea 1024 683 LA County Library

Desert Sea

It was the summer of 1963 and Mexicali was hot as hell. Back then, the streets were dirt roads; only main boulevards were paved. It was a hot, dusty hole of a city, but Dad had learned of the border town’s promise and had moved our family there from Guaymas, Sonora, when I was 4. read more
City in Flames
City In Flames 1024 683 LA County Library

City In Flames

We had a clear shot on the 110 South after Downtown L.A. At the Century Boulevard exit, Dad’s white Chevy Cavalier station wagon idled at the red light when the song playing on K-LOVE was interrupted by Pepe Barreto’s voice: read more
Skip to content