Forever auntie and niece

By Yulissa Gonzalez

If you were to see me with my niece or hear me talk about her you might assume that she was my sibling but she's actually my cousin's baby. In Mexican culture it's normal to call people your tio or tia even if they really aren't. But in our family, everyone is related and to me, she's like a little sister to me, and her mom is like my older sister. But that doesn't change the fact that I would be there for her in a heartbeat with no hesitation.

When my cousin Fatima told me she was pregnant we were in Rite Aid and walking down the aisle where the vitamins are. I was asking her what type of vitamins she needed and then she said the words, “I'm pregnant.” My body filled with excitement not only because she was pregnant but because the person who was like a mother to me at times was going to experience an amazing thing and I would be there helping her through it. 

Throughout  the following months I witnessed her excitement for this baby to come and her being worried and there was a rough time she went through where she felt alone. Despite all she went through, her being the strong woman she is, she never gave up no matter how hard it was she kept going for her future baby. 

Despite Fatima living with her parents and having a few cousins her age she was still the oldest child, she didn't have the older sibling who had been through what she was going through. Which made all her hard patches so much harder. Everyday she felt more alone not having a role model to look up to. 

Then the time finally came, in December 2022, when my niece was born. The day I saw Sofia for the first time all I could think about was how tiny she was and how she would be extremely lucky to have an amazing mother. 

At the time they were living in the same household so I would constantly see her everyday and I would help Fatima do diy photoshoots to capture the amazing memories and the rare milestones like her first steps, her first laugh, and smile. It was all an amazing thing to see how much and how fast she was growing.  

Although Fatima and her boyfriend and Sofia moved out after the baby was a few months old they still come over daily and no matter the distance between us I know that they will always be the ones making my troubles go away and I will always be there for them in a heartbeat.

As we are getting closer to her 2nd birthday party I am filled with awe to see my cousin, her boyfriend and their baby thriving together and being each other's happiness. 

Admiring the moment she went from calling me my sister’s name to Yuyu and to now calling me Yuli and being able to see her running up to me when she sees me and knowing how much of a great job Fatima is doing.

The times I feel alone or need some cheering up I know that I will have these amazing people by my side not being hesitant at all to come pick me up. But my favorite days are when all we need is a text saying “target run?” to go on our daily target runs or shopping runs or even food runs. 

As I continue to be there for Sofia and seeing her growing I hope to continue to see her thriving and growing into an amazing girl and to continue our close relationship and to show her how much I will always be there for her. 

For the Warrior Times, this is Yulissa Gonzalez