How we cite our quotes: ("Abbreviated chapter name," page)
Quote #1
"Rufino's body ached from the exertions. His joints swelled like an arthritic's. He begged his wife for a few nights' peace but Lourdes's peals only became more urgent, her glossy black eyes more importunate. Lourdes was reaching through Rufino for something he could not give her, she wasn't sure what." ("Going South," 21)
García has a heavy task in convincing her readers that Rufino can actually be suffering from too much sexual activity with his wife, but she does a pretty convincing job here. Above his physical suffering, however, is the desperation and pain that motivates his wife to seek him in such a way.
Quote #2
"Lourdes lifts her dead father's gnarled hands, his papery, spotted wrists. She notices the way his fingers are twisted above the first joints, stiffened haphazardly like branches. His stomach is shaved and tracked with stitches, and his skin is so transparent that even the most delicate veins are visible. The vast white bed obscures him." ("Going South," 21)
This is a virtuouso performance of description of Jorge's final struggle with cancer. His dead body is an archive of medical procedures and the depredations of old age and sadness.
Quote #3
"When Gustavo left her to return to Spain, Celia was inconsolable. The spring rains made her edgy, the greenery hurt her eyes. She saw mourning doves peck at carrion on her doorstep and visited the botánicas for untried potions." ("Palmas Street," 36)
In the ancient tradition of lovers who actually die of lovesickness, Celia is consumed by her thwarted passion for Gustavo. This is a pattern that will be repeated by Felicia, who will not have the same ability to recover from her disappointments and illness.