When over a period of years I took creative non-fiction classes, I amassed a whole slew of personal essays. I noticed threads that ran through many of these essays: my childhood in Chile, interrupted and uprooted by our move to the US; my struggles fitting in to a new country and culture; feeling my native language recede; and grappling with a broken family and secretive mother. Alternating feelings of guilt and resentment wove through my relationship with my mother back then. I had questions about events and turns in our family life, but my questions seemed impermissible to ask.
Why not, I thought, put my essays together to form a narrative and to seek answers? I did and in so doing, dug into memories, dreams, and imagination. What came out was a new perspective on past events and circumstances as well as an understanding and appreciation for my mother. The result of this process is Living in Two Worlds: A Memoir.
