Annotations for Sounds: Background--music--folk

[Mexican folk music] The Chicana writer, Ana Castillo, had an abuelita, a grandmother who signed her name with an X. Castillo's father dropped out of high school. Her mother only finished primary school, but all three had an indelible impact on Castillo as a writer. They told her stories or cuentos. And in her latest novel, So far From God, Ana Castillo brings these cuentos to life.

[Mexican Folk music] [Reading] Esperanza let out a shriek, long and so high-pitched that started some dogs barking in the distance. Sofi had stopped crying to see what was causing the girls' hysteria. When suddenly the whole crowd began to scream and fainted and move away from the priest who finally stood alone next to the baby's coffin. The lid had pushed all the way open and the little girl inside sat up just as sweetly as if she had woken from a nap, rubbing her eyes and yawning, "Mami?" She called, looking around and squinting her eyes against a harsh light. Father Jerome got hold of himself and sprinkled holy water in the direction of the child, but for the moment, was too stunned to utter so much as a word of prayer. Then, as if all this was not amazing enough, as Father Jerome moved toward the child, she lifted herself up into the air and landed on the church roof. "Don't touch me, don't touch me." She warned. This was only the beginning of the child's long lives' phobia of people.

[Background--music--folk] Of the more than 40,000 people who visit El Rancho de las Golondrinas every year, about 12,000 are children like Melanie Carr and Terry Nelson. They're here on a field trip from their grade school in Albuquerque.