Victorina Gonzales - a 93-year old wonder

As I gather names, addresses and phone numbers from heretofore unknown family members while researching into family archives, I sent a letter to Victorina in February, 2011 all the way to Oahu in Hawaii. By mid-June, I had given up my look-see in my mail box, knowing she was old and possibly unable to correspond. Her mother was Cristencia Silvan Gonzales (Christina), my great aunt who was part of the Spanish exodus from Fuentesauco with my grandmother and their family. She hadn't forgotten! She called from Hawaii and I was delighted to hear her voice. Victorina was one of two living children from that marriage. Old? Unable to correspond? What a hoot. She was wonderful, concise in her memories, humorous, overall delightful and to the point. My phone interview took on a world of its own with my pen poised.

Victoria, as she is called, gave me moving insights into the lives of my grandmother, Manuela, (whom she called Mildred -- the Americanized translation) and my great grandparents. Great stories and laughter-filled memories. When I asked her --- as I've asked every member of the family I have 'met' so far, if she knew Uncle Victorino and Aunt Ramona Silvan --- when nobody else ever heard of them..... she chuckled. "Yes, they were my godparents and I knew them well." I was stunned. Amazing contacts --- as my cousin (Tess) and fellow family historian told me several times, "You just never know what you will find, when or where and from whom... keep digging!"

Victoria remembers translating letters for her mother when she (Christina) received letters from her brother, Geronimo --- the infamous brother that took me nearly two years to find and just recently received a picture of..... Sadly, nobody has even one of those letters. All we know is that Christina begged Geronimo to leave Spain and join the families in California... she kept the letters in a pocketbook purse on a hook in her closet all those years ago...

As we spoke of family, Spain, Hawaii, her life and the lives of our ancestors, she asked me about the children's book she'd heard I had written. What? How had she heard of this....? A book I'd written and edited a hundred times in the past 25 years... but never published. She told me to get to it... and she wanted to buy two of the books. No charge... I told her I'd just mail them to her and she said, "If I can't buy them, I don't want them." She is a fiesty and lovely old lady whom I'd dearly love to sit down and talk with personally.

For now, she pushed me into action and I published GOODBYE BALLOON --- Illustrations will be in the second edition -- as I have an out-of-the-box (thanks, Becky for the idea) thought on that. Until then, I am smiling at Victoria's input --- between her push and my new friend's push (another PSteele) I am also looking over another unfinished manuscript about my daughter, Christina (Chrissy)...not knowing I had a great Aunt Christina of my own. Life is filled with losses and finds and I am trying to focus on the finds to get me through the losses.