Finding Celia
Emilia researches the Echevarria family.
New to the series? Start Here
People have the right to know their past in order to see their future. As historians, we have the privilege and burden to share these stories. In some ways we’re like an Old Testament prophet. We speak to our own communities, at times proclaiming cautionary tales to avoid a disaster. But people ignore the past, falsely believing that they’ve progressed from the old ways. While culture and technology evolves, human nature remains the same.
I cleared my evening, expecting to take hours finding Celia. Echevarria is not a common last name, but we are a predominantly Hispanic city. It turned out that my first instinct proved to be correct: She is a very local elementary teacher. In fact, she received her Bachelors in Education here at IUM.
I sipped my hot chocolate as I mapped out the ways I could contact her. Felix Varela Elementary has her school email listed, but at best she would assume that I’m trying to scam her. The next reliable source was Facebook.
Celia hasn’t posted since 2018, but there were some details I could gather: both parents are Cuban, and still happily married. Celia and her brother seem close in age, but he looked young in her graduation photo. She was a member of IUM’s salsa group, and performed with the team. While she might have dated, there was no relationship history on her account.
Exhausting her Facebook, I searched her Instagram only to find it set to private. At this point, I concluded that it was ridiculous to think that stalking her was a good idea.
It wasn’t until I revisited the family tree that I recognized her uncle - Father Agustin Echevarria.
I don’t really know him, but he once gave a talk on the Mass at my church. He seemed intelligent and personable, and his faith seemed genuine. Few priests stand out like Father Agustin. Since he’s a somewhat public figure, I decided that he would be the most approachable Echevarria.
All of my stalking research does not distract me from the great mystery: This family tree was created in the early 1800s, and yet it has the most up to date descendants of the Echevarria family. There are even distant relatives referenced on the margins of the main family line. Who has been documenting this family all these years?
I'm trying to decide which question takes precedence--"who was documenting this family" or "WHY WAS THIS BOOK GLOWING!"
The lack of dialogue makes this really interesting. Deepens the mystery, makes me feel like this is a personal journal of the historian we are reading, as he tries to document his research and his plan forward. A great continuation!
"Stalking" lol. #Felt