by John Sarkis

Created on: July 03, 2008   Last Updated: October 02, 2009

Quadroons and Octoroons:

Chapter III

One day, Maria decided she was going to make a different dish on a Saturday, she warned her uncle Juan about her venture the previous Saturday; "I'm not making Ox-tail next Saturday; I'm going to make earth-crabs instead." "Earth-crabs" he said, "but you would have to go to Cardenas to get earth-crabs." her uncle replied. "Someone is going to get them for me, someone I meet in college, her family is from Cardenas, and they go and get earth-crabs every other weekend and then bring them back." Maria said "That's almost eighty-miles from here," her Tio Juan said, "but if you say so, see you next Saturday" her uncle replied.

Earth-crabs were huge, some could weigh as much as six-pounds, and measure almost two feet across, but they are exquisite tasting to say the least. They live in large palm trees and eat kumquats, they also have very large claws. Maria was going to omit the frijoles this time, since the crabs are made in a way that produces a great deal of sauce; this sauce is mixed with the white rice, and makes the dish taste all the better!

Again, she realizes she didn't have any pork-lard to make the meal with, so she went to the store to get some. She sees Roberto, and decides to do something she'd never done before: she asks him out on a date, instead of accepting though, he tells her to come over his house and meet his parents, and have dinner with him instead. "Okay" Maria says, and they make a dinner date. Roberto kisses Maria, and she was glad she waited for her first kiss as long as she did, even if she was already twenty-five years old. Maria was nervous. "What will they say when they see I'm black!" But she was worried about making a new dish and breaking tradition; falling in love with a white man, and making earth crabs on Saturday instead of ox-tail. So she went home and didn't mention it to her sister or father what she was about to do. The dinner was exquisite though, earth-crabs are one of the best tasting of all Cuban dishes. The only problem is getting to the meat, this can be a very messy ordeal, and it was so; but worth it when you consider how good thes crabs were.

The big day comes, she was still living at home, since this was tradition back then for a young single woman, or man for that matter: Latinos would live at home until they marry, and if they don't marry; they live at home until their parents die, and are then forced to either move out or whatever their other options are. Unity is very strong

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