Introduction

Growing up, a fiesta meant countertops laden with potluck foods, cousins playing hide-and-seek, adults playing poker and drinking Tecate, and grabbing a plate of food to eat whenever you were hungry. It also offered the aroma of plump tamales and frijoles de la olla slowly cooking on the stove top. No matter what the occasion, we shared laughs and stories to the beat of Spanish music from a record player. Those lively get-togethers that once seemed to stretch endlessly now seem to fly by faster with each passing year.