A Dream Called Home

Reyna reflects on her complex relationship with her mother. She is surprised when her mother brings a plate of food to a local fruit vendor during a yard sale. Reyna learns that the vendor is undocumented, and that he has a wife and four children in Mexico. She realizes there are two sides to every immigration story: that of the adults who leave in search of work, and that of the children left behind.

Reyna’s mother makes ends meet by holding a booth at the swap and meet. This frustrates Reyna because she knows her mother has better options. Reyna agrees to help her mother with her own yard sale. The following week, her mother turns up at Reyna’s house with boxes of used clothes, kitchen supplies, and toys, as well as furniture she picked up off the street. Reyna realizes how much her mother enjoys interacting with people. However, their relationship sours when Reyna’s mother starts holding yard sales in front of the house three times a week. Reyna wants to put a stop to the sales, but she fears she will once again lose her mother. Tensions rise further when Reyna’s mother throws out Reyna’s compost scraps. Reyna cannot bring herself to apologize, even after her mother rummages through the trash to retrieve them.