The Distance Between Us

Memoirists often rely on this intersection to explore and reveal their histories. There are times when Reyna’s imagination gets the best of her. For example, she imagines being struck down by God for lying. Her sister Mago encourages her at that point to use her imagination for something more constructive. In Mexico, she brings a photo of her father with her each time she moves, talking to it and calling him The Man Behind the Glass; while she cherishes the photo as a memory of him, it also comes to symbolizes all she imagines him to be—which turns out to be a fantasy.

She also has cherished memories, and frightful ones. In the habit of collecting memories—some of which may not be factual—she craves hearing about her parents. She remembers her mother’s memory of being at the pool with her father. Additionally, she remembers something her father told her—that he bathed her when she was very small and too young to remember. Remembering the story of her umbilical cord being buried in Iguala, however, may not be real. Mago is the one who told her this story. Later, perhaps out of spite, Mago tells Reyna that the story was an invention from Mago’s own imagination.