Free How Tía Lola Came to (Visit) Stay by Julia Álvarez Page A

In a few weeks, up in the mountains, the maples will begin to turn.
    Miguel’s friends and their parents arrive early. The boys head upstairs behind Tía Lola and Rudy. Their parents stay downstairs, drinking grape smoothies and talking about how their gardens are doing. At last, the silver car rolls into the driveway.
    Slowly, Colonel Charlebois climbs out. He stands, a cane in one hand, looking up at the house. One quarter of the house is purple. The other three-quarters is still white. Which color will the whole house end up being?
    Miguel looks down at the old man from an upstairs window. Suddenly, he feels a sense of panic. What if Tía Lola’s plan doesn’t work? He doesn’t want to move from the house that has finally become a home to him.
    He feels his aunt’s hand on his shoulder.
“No hay problema, Miguelito,”
she reassures him as if she can read his thoughts even without looking into his eyes.
    *   *   *
    Colonel Charlebois is still staring up at the house when the front door opens. Out file nine boys in purple-and-white-striped uniforms and purple baseball caps. They look as if the house itself has sprouted them! Miguel leads the way, a baseball in his hand-Behind them, Tía Lola and Rudy each hold the corner of a pennant that reads: CHARLIE’S BOYS.
    Colonel Charlebois gazes at each boy. It is difficult to tell what is going through his mind. Suddenly, he drops his cane on the front lawn and calls out, “Let’s play ball!” He stands, wobbly and waiting and smiling. Miguel looks into the old man’s eyes and sees a boy, legs apart, body bent forward, a gloved hand held out in front of him.
    He lifts his arm and throws the ball at that young boy—and the old man catches it.

Chapter Eight
Mami’s Birthday Party
    Mami’s birthday party is planned as a small surprise party with a few friends—not unlike Migue's birthday back in March.
    But soon it turns into a block party that will be like the ones they used to have in New York. Except that here in Vermont, there’s no such thing as a simple block. You have neighbors who have neighbors who have neighbors, and before you know it, you have a whole county coming over to your house for your “small surprise party.”
    There is one other reason why the party keeps growing that cannot be blamed on Vermont-Tía Lola-She is the friendliest person Miguel and Juanita have ever known-Tía Lola speaks with everyone-“To practice my English,” she explains, though really she just loves people.
    After a chat with Reggie, the UPS manwhom months ago she turned away from her door, Tía Lola goes running down the drive after the brown van-“What are you doing on August thirtieth?” she gasps when Reggie finally sees her in his rearview mirror and stops the van.
    “Coming over to your house for your niece’s party,” Reggie replies. “What else?”
    Melrose, the town clerk, says the same thing when Tía Lola asks him. And Ernestine, who runs the seamstress shop, and Johnny, who has the car garage, and Petey, who owns the pet shop, and the three waitresses at Rudy’s Restaurant, Sandy, Shauna, and Dawn, and Shauna’s husband and Dawn’s sister and Sandy’s partner, who has a best friend—
    In less than two weeks, over seventy people will be descending on the house.
    “We’ve got to plan Mami’s party, Tía Lola,” Miguel keeps reminding his aunt.
    But Tía Lola seems unfazed. She stands in front of the house, her head cocked, looking at her masterpiece. The painting is finally finished. The house is completely purple with a salmon-pink trim. “Maybe…just maybe,” Tía Lola wondersout loud, “turquoise with hot pink would work better?”
    “About the party,” Miguel tries again, “We’ve got to plan, Tía Lola.”
    “
¿Tú sabes lo que dicen de los planes?”
Tía Lola says, winking. Does he know what they say about plans? Make them, but be prepared to break them!
    “Yeah, I know,” Miguel agrees, “Like when we invited ten people