Abuela, Don't Forget Me

Ogle explores his early childhood memories of the times he spent at Abuela’s house. An important memory in the poem “hamper” details Ogle discovering the closet laundry hamper in Abuela’s house. He hides in the hamper from his mother’s screaming and sits in the dark, waiting for someone to come find him. Abuela is the one who finds him, illustrating that Abuela will always be the one to come looking for him.

The early poems introduce Abuela’s Mexican heritage. Ogle employs the use of Spanish language throughout the poems, such as in the poem “te amo siempre” (“I love you forever”). When Ogle becomes frustrated with himself, calling himself “dumb” (4) for struggling to say the phrase correctly, Abuela has him try again. Once more, Ogle asks her what the phrase means. She tells him, emphasizing that she will love him forever. Ogle writes that Abuela will prove this to be true, regardless of how many times he messes up in his life.

The Spanish language is an important aspect of Abuela’s character and a source of tension between Abuela and Ogle’s mother. In “mijo,” Abuela leans down and kisses Ogle’s ear, telling him, “I love you, mijo” (8). Ogle asks her what a “mee-ho” (8) is, and she explains that it means “son” in Spanish. Misunderstanding, Ogle exclaims that he is not the sun, and she tells him that he is her son because he is her first grandson. When Ogle asks her why she will not just call him her son in English, she explains that she wants to refer to him in her first language, Spanish. Ogle asks her what his first language is and his mother interrupts, stating that he speaks English and that he is her son, not Abuela’s. Abuela is silent after this, casting her eyes to the ground.

This interaction establishes the long-running tension between Abuela and Ogle’s mother, who was only 20 when she gave birth to Ogle, leaving college as a result. Ogle’s mother struggles to hold steady employment, refusing to live near her mother and resenting her offers of help, yet often leaving Ogle with Abuela to take care of him. Ogle remarks in the poem “from” that when Abuela speaks about his mother her smile dims.

The poems make it clear that Ogle’s Abuela is his primary caretaker, even though he does not live with her full-time. She often takes on the role of a parent, ensuring that he is fed and teaching him manners, such as in “por favor y gracias” when she teaches him to say “please” and “thank you” in Spanish when he wants something, and to say it to everyone he meets because everyone deserves respect. Abuela’s own life growing up in poverty in Mexico has taught her valuable lessons about the importance of respect and gratitude for what one has. In “chicken spaghetti,” she makes Ogle a dinner of chicken and spaghetti, telling him that when she was growing up her family often went hungry. She says that she is lucky to be able to provide for him and that he will never go hungry as long as she is alive.

Abuela also supports Ogle’s early education, helping him to read and write. In “library,” Abuela takes Ogle to the public library. Inside, Ogle marvels at the number of books before him, asking Abuela if he can read all of them. Abuela tells him that yes, he can because if he works hard, he can do anything. She also teaches him how to print his name in “names,” showing him “how letters / make words / like magic” (9). These early memories will become important later on as Ogle’s talents for writing and storytelling emerge, a direct result of Abuela’s teaching and support from an early age.

Part 1 concludes with an important poem, “pecans,” which introduces a significant symbol within the text. Abuela’s backyard is full of pecan trees, which litter the ground with their shells. Ogle stands beneath the branches, trying to catch as many as he can. Abuela rakes the pecans into piles and tells Ogle that she is grateful for the trees that grow food in her backyard because when she was growing up in Mexico, she did not have much food. Abuela tells him that she is grateful: “For my trees. For my job. For this country. For you” (18). 

Ogle grabs onto a branch and shakes it so that the nuts fall onto the ground, asking Abuela if they can eat the nuts now. She tells him that they must wait two weeks for the nuts to dry out, reminding him that “Las cosas buenas vienan a aquellos que esperan” (“Good things come to those who wait”) (19). When the nuts have dried, Abuela removes the nuts from their shells, seals them in bags, and mails the shelled pecans to Ogle.