Chapter 20: Menudo for The Spirit

I was 16 when I experienced my first heartbreak. As I lay locked up in my room, feeling that my world was coming to an end, a gentle knock on my door brought me back to my senses. It was my mom. She had been by my side all day, wiping my tears and telling me that I would be okay. However, as a young, naïve teenager, I thought to myself, how could she possibly know how I feel? Walking in, I saw her place a book on my nightstand. She took my hands in hers and said, “Mija, I know that you’re going through a difficult time right now. And I know that you may not want to talk to me about it. So I bought you this book. Maybe it’ll cheer you up.” When she left the room I sat up in my bed and reached over for the book. The title of it was Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul. I skimmed through the table of contents and stopped at the section entitled, “On Relationships.” As I began reading, I found myself relating to similar stories of first loves, breakups, and sorrow. The lessons prescribed by each of these narratives involved perseverance, believing in oneself, caring for others, and inner-strength. My mom was right. While I valued her love and support, there was something different about relating to my peers. The more that I read their stories, the stronger I felt about sharing mine.