Rafael Falcon, author of Mi Gente: In Search of the Hispanic Soul

Students in Latino Literature are responding on this blog to "The Reflection of My Essence," a short essay or chapter in Rafael Falcon's book of short personal stories, Mi Gente: In Search of the Hispanic Soul.

This book explores Falcon's childhood in Aibonito, Puerto Rico and the ways in which his life is braided into the rich fabric of Hispanic culture and heritage. Rafael Falcon taught Spanish at Goshen College for over thirty years. As a Faculty Fellow of the Center for Intercultural Teaching and Learning (CITL) at Goshen, he led a seminar with Latino students in which he explored those stories with students, helping them to discover the stories in their own lives. Midway through our course, and as an introduction to our unit on Puerto Rican literature, students have been challenged to write their own versions of Falcon's "The Reflection of My Essence." As you will see from the student blogs, this has been a rich tool for helping students to think not only about their face, features, and family, but for thinking about their cultural connections, their place in the world, and their dreams. If you want to read Falcon's original story, you can find it in Mi Gente. He is also the author of Salsa, a book about Hispanic Culture, and 101 Spanish Riddles.

Falcon's American dreams brought him to the University of Iowa, where he earned a Ph.D. He met his American Mennonite wife, Christine, while she was doing service with the Mennonite Church in Puerto Rico. Later the two made their home in Goshen, Indiana when Falcon was hired in the Spanish department at Goshen College. Through the years, Falcon has maintained a strong connection to Puerto Rico, though most of his immediate family members live in the United States.

I share a special connection with the Falcons, since they are the grandparents of my beautiful Puerto Rican American grandchildren. This makes them "mi gente."