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Denise Martinez
Kimberly Lewis
English 114A
29 September 2014
The Very Last Dinner
How is he Ama, is he eating all his food? Hes okay mija, nomas que no quiere
comer.(Hes okay just that he doesnt really want to eat.) That was the same answer my
grandmother would give every time someone asked how my grandfather was doing. My
grandfather always had a great appetite until diabetes changed his form of living. It is hard to
remember a loved one before a certain illness lead to their death.
My grandfather was such a healthy, good-looking man. No one ever believed he was my
grandfather. He was often confused as being my dad. Even if he was not, I loved him as one.
People would sometimes ask if my dad was older than him and they would often lie and say he
was and play it off as being brothers. My grandpa suffered a lot in his last months of life. He
became weak and very ill, unable to do the thing he used to. How I wish I could have helped
him but it just was not in my hands. It seemed as my grandfather was just ready to give up on life
at times. It was really heartbreaking to see what he had become.
He was hospitalized for a very long time, unable to even eat a full meal. He spent months
in and out of the hospital. As soon as the doctors thought he was getting better they would allow
him to go home but soon enough his health caused him to go back. He hated the hospital. I hated
it as well; I could not stand seeing how he lay there hopelessly. I think my grandfather felt closer
to death there. He was lonely, sad, depressed and more alone as the times he had to stay in the
hospital increased. I remember when I would ask him to eat his food at the hospital. He would

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yell at me for even bringing food up, Esto no es comida hija. Comida es lo que cosina tu Ama
en la casa!(This isnt food. Food is what your grandmother cooks at home!) He missed my
grandmothers cooking. Who would have not? She has the absolute best cooking. No food can
ever compare to my grandmothers. She takes pride in what she cooks. My grandmother was
taught to cook at such a young age that now all her dishes are made with love, from the bottom
of her heart. It is said that a mans heart is won over by his stomach. Maybe that is the reason
why my grandfather was so in love with her throughout all the years they spent together.
My grandmother often cooked pozole (pork stew), ceviche (sea food), caldo de rez (beef
soup), burritos, tacos and plenty of other delicious Mexican plates. Everyone loves her cooking.
There has not been one single person that can say no to her tasty food. Her food really is
delicious; unfortunately, my grandfather was forbidden to eat it. I remember one of my
grandfathers favorites was taquitos. After diagnosed with diabetes, my grandpa had to follow a
strict, no greasy food, diet. He also suffered of a lot of discomfort in his stomach after eating.
Nothing he ate ever satisfied him. He spent so much time hardly eating and always complaining.
He would often ask my grandmother to cook for him like she would. As much as my
grandmother loved cooking she would hold back because she was afraid my grandfather would
want some. He would always ask her for her famous taquitos.
Taquitos consist of a tortilla filled with delicious seasoned chicken. The process of
making them is quite easy. Cooking the well-seasoned chicken starts off the process. My
grandmother seasons it with spices that can only be found in Guadalajara, Jalisco. That is where
she was raised and taught how to cooks so yummy. Te taquitos my grandfather loves so much
are what we call al estilo Jalisco (Jalisco style). After the chicken is cooked you place on the
center of the flat tortilla and roll it into a cylinder. The final step to achieving this delightful plate

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is to lay them in a pan full of oil to get deep fried into a crunchy outer shell. If you want to take it
a step further and go outside the box, it can be topped with guacamole and sour cream. My
grandma also added that extra hint of love to set her taquitos to set them apart from other
taquitos. This plate was not only one of my grandfathers favorites but it was also his last meal
we ever shared with him as a family before he left this world.
That night my grandfather was sick in his room like usual. My grandmother decided to
make taquitos for the whole family. For some reason my grandfather left his room to meet up
with the rest of the family at the dinner table. He would never do that because he would hardly
eat and he also never had the strength to be out of his bed for too long. That night as we all set up
the dinner table, my grandmother offered him something other than the taquitos to eat because
that was too greasy for him to eat and it was late as well. He replied, Andale amor, dejame
comerme un taquito.(Please my love let me eat a taquito.) My grandmother acknowledged the
effort he had made to have dinner with the family and made him his taquitos. I can still
remember the smile he had in his face after knowing he was finally getting my grandmothers
famous taquitos. He had not smiled like that in so long. Who would have known a simple dish
can make a person so happy? We all ate and talked about how our day went like we usually did.
My grandfather looked content and said, Me siento bien agusto, no me duele nada. Por fin un
dia de descanso sin dolor.(I feel very comfortable nothing hurts. Finally a day of rest without
any pain.) After dinner he went back to bed to rest. Little did we know that was my grandfathers
way of letting us know that was his last night with us. That night my grandfather passed away.
He left the world happy at last with his family by his side. It relieves me to know that my
grandfathers last day was a good one with no pain and nothing less than joy of seeing all us
together as one. My grandfathers passing affected my grandmother more than anyone could

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have imagined. She just didnt want to accept the fact that my grandfather was not with us any
longer. She devoted her entire life to him and losing him was and enormous pain. So painful that
even her cooking became different. My grandmother no longer cooks the same as she use to.
When my grandfather was living she cooked for him with so much love the food was so tasty
and it is not like that anymore. She actually does not really cook anymore; I have to like beg her
to make me one of her famous dishes but even then, they are just not the way they use to be,
something changed.
Ever since that day, taquitos always remind me of my loving grandfather who is now
finally resting in peace. Having taquitos as a family always brings back memories of when my
grandfather was still with us. I love and miss him very much. Him leaving us made me a stronger
person and made me love and cherish my family a lot more. He taught me to always fight for
what I want and never give up. He is the biggest reason why I am now attending Cal State
Northridge. The night my grandfather passed away I promised him I will accomplish everything
he believed I was capable of doing and more. When I was younger my grandfather was always
like my support system, my motivation to keep going. When growing up my grandfather was the
first person I would go to show of my good grades, he was so proud of me. Mija tu si vas a ser
alguien en tu vida, tu vas a llegar muy legos. No mas siguele echando ganas en los
estudios(You will become someone good in life, you are going to be very successful. Just dont
give up and stay on track in school), he would always say after I would come home with good
reports from school. My grandfather believed I would one day attend a good university and
achieve many things in life. He wanted me to be successful and I will do anything in my hands to
prove my grandfather right for always thinking right of me. This is just the beginning of a long
journey, and I am ready to take on a new challenge.