hundreds of stories
Abuela!
Are you OK?
Paciencia y fe!
Paciencia y fe!
Let me see it again!
We kept it safe
So we survived the night;
What happens today?
A third for you
Uh huh, uh huh! Uh huh, uh huh!
A third for me!
No pare! Sigue, sigue!
The rest for Sonny—
And with our share of the money
And with our share of the money—
Dream of the seaside air!
See me beside you there!
Think of the hundreds of stories we will share!
You and I!
Ayy…
Now you can sell your store!
Open a bar by the shore!
I’ve told you hundreds of stories
About home; make some more
More…
Yo! I know just where to go!
There’s a little beach named Playa Rincón
With no road, you need a rowboat or motorbike
To reach this beach, it’s just a stone’s throw
From home
My folks’ home
Before I was born
Before they passed on
And left me on my own, in New York, with the grocery store
They would talk about home, I listened closely for
The way they whispered to each other
‘Bout the warmer winter weather
Inseparable, they even got sick together
They never got better… passed away that December
And left me with these memories like dyin’ embers
From a dream I can’t remember…
Ever since then it’s like
Another day deeper in debt with different dilemmas
The bodega’s a mess, I’ll be seeing less of Vanessa
Abuela I don’t know how I can keep it together!
Remember the story of your name...
It was engraved on a passing ship on the day your family came
Your father said “Usnavi,​
That’s what we’ll name the baby.”
It really said “U.S. Navy,” but hey…
I worked with what they gave me okay…
They’d be so proud of you today!
Then by the end of July
Uh huh, uh huh! Uh huh, uh huh!
Out where the sea meets the sky!
No pare! Sigue, sigue!
Think of the hundreds of stories
We’ll create
You and I!
Ay…
We’ll find your island—
I’ll find my island sky
Ay, find your island—
But whatever we do it’s—
You and I!