AUNT MERCEDES AND THE COFFEE SERRANO(Mano Olivera) AUNT MERCEDES AND THE COFFEE SERRANO

(English translation from Spanish: Dill McLain)

He could no longer stand life in Cuba. His dream was to get to the USA.
One day, he slung a backpack over his shoulder and left. Aunt Mercedes would
be waiting for him on the other side of the border.
He never arrived. The vehicle overturned while fleeing from the police.
His mother received the dead body and collapsed in pain. But she already had a
plan. She did not bury the body but paid for it to be refrigerated until it could be
admitted to the crematorium.
When the ashes were handed over to her after ten days, she spoke to Aunt
Mercedes on the phone, who explained to her that some of the ‘mulas’ who
came from there were returning from Cuba with goods. They brought
medicines, fake study certificates, and rare items such as guanabana and sapote
fruits. Unlike those who paid for such transports, the people delivering the
goods in Miami did not know what they were.
„You have to take advantage of this. Put the ashes in an empty Serrano
coffee packet!“ Mercedes advised her. „Seal it well so that it looks brand new.
Don’t tell the ‘mula’ what it is. Explain that I don’t like the Bustelo coffee from
here because it’s too strong and that I really want to enjoy an authentic Cuban
coffee.“
The Serrano coffee arrived over there without any problems. Aunt
Mercedes opened the package and briefly looked to heaven to thank God. Then,
she knelt down and buried the ashes in her little garden in Coral Gables.
In a way, her nephew’s dream had finally come true.

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