For My Tita Brenda

I can't be at home right now, which hurts so much, but I have been asked by my family to write a little something to be read at my aunt's funeral so that I can be there in spirit.

The very first memory I have of Tita Brenda, is of a long haired, gorgeous woman who looked like my mother, and that has never changed in my head. For as long as I've known her, she has been a force to be reckoned with. She said what she meant, and meant what she said, and while sometimes we Reyes cousins would fear her scathingly honest tongue, we also knew that she loved us just as fiercely. Tita Brenda was nothing if not passionate about life. We could always count on her to be our champion, and her generosity was unparalleled. If you were with her, you never wanted for anything, whether it be food, clothes or attention. Somehow, she made every one of us feel like we were special to her in our own right.

It is because she was such a source of strength for the family that her passing has broken our hearts so badly. I never imagined we would have to live without you, Tita Brenda, and now somehow we must. You were the Reyes family's warrior, passionate champion, hilarious prankster, shopping maven, and loving aunt to all of us kids. I bet you never thought your life and legacy would live on through each one of us, but it does. We are who we are in part because of you. I just wish I could've told you that in person.

I will love you forever, and I know that I will miss you forever. But oh how cool that you get to meet Robin Williams and Lauren Bacall. They won't know what hit them!

Brenda Reyes April 22, 1942 - August 7, 2014