Lesson 9:My Search for My Father

Level: X
DRA: 60
Genre:
Realistic Fiction
Strategy:
Visualize
Skill:
Cause and Effect
Word Count: 2,402
6.2.9
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN
Online Leveled Books
1032703
H O UG H T O N M IF F L IN
by Edwin Hernandez
Illustrated by John Martin
Copyright © by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
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Chapter One
Going to Puerto Rico
Matino Torres looked out the airplane window. He could
see the island of Puerto Rico below. Matino was excited about
the trip. He wanted to find answers to some questions about his
father. His father — whom he called “Poppi” — died of cancer
three months ago.
Matino remembered his father’s funeral. That day, he sat
next to his mother during the church service. He loved his
father very much. But he did not cry at all that day. He felt
too confused.
Matino did not show his feelings. No one in his family
knew that he was confused about his father. Poppi, Matino
thought sadly, why was Roberto Clemente so important to you when
you were alive?
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Matino looks out the airplane window. He is
going to Puerto Rico with his cousin and aunt.
Matino’s cousin Enrique sat beside him. Enrique’s mother,
Julia Oliveras, sat next to Enrique. She was Matino’s aunt. Aunt
Julia was a poet and teacher in Brooklyn. Matino and his family
lived in Brooklyn, too.
Every spring, Aunt Julia went back to Puerto Rico for a
visit. This spring, she had invited Matino to come with her
and Enrique.
“Where’s the airport?” Enrique asked his mother
in Spanish.
“In Carolina,” Aunt Julia answered. “Carolina is close to
San Juan. We’ll be there soon.”
Matino knew that the Roberto Clemente Sports City was
in Carolina. Matino wanted to go there to find the answer to
his question about his father.
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Chapter Two
Staying with Aunt Isabel
Aunt Julia’s sister Isabel met them at the airport. Aunt
Isabel was always immaculately dressed. Her clothes were so
nice and neat. But she never forgot that she had grown up poor.
Now, she owned a house near San Juan.
After they came to Aunt Isabel’s house, they unpacked.
Then, they sat on the patio in back of the house. The strong
smell of tropical flowers permeated the air around them.
During dinner, Matino heard a musical sound. It was tiny
Puerto Rican tree frogs singing loudly.
Aunt Isabel said, “My husband Francisco loved these frogs.
He once told me that if the frogs were taken off the island, they
would never sing again.”
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Francisco had left Puerto Rico to find a job many years
before. But it made him very sad to be away. Matino’s mother
said Francisco died from a broken heart. Back then, Matino was
too young to understand what she meant. Now, at age 13, he
thought he knew.
Matino and Enrique slept in the extra room. It had a
window on the street. The boys could see the buildings of San
Juan against the sky. Next door, a TV was on. Matino realized a
baseball game was on the TV. He listened to the Spanish voices.
He heard the fans cheer when the batter hit a home run.
Matino thought of the old baseball his father had. It was
signed by Roberto Clemente. It reminded his father of the
first time he met Clemente. Clemente wore number 21 for the
Pittsburgh Pirates. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
He was the greatest Puerto Rican player ever.
Matino closed his eyes and rolled over. Enrique was
already asleep. His cousin was not interested in sports. But
Matino loved baseball like his father had. Sometimes, Matino
wondered if baseball was the only thing they had shared.
On the patio, everyone enjoys the smell
of flowers and the singing frogs.
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Chapter Three
Exploring Old San Juan
The next morning, Aunt Isabel took them on a walk in Old
San Juan. Aunt Julia went, too. The two sisters walked slowly.
Matino and Enrique went ahead. The streets were covered with
rounded stones. Isabel told them that the stones were from old
Spanish ships.
Enrique complained about the heat. So Aunt Isabel took
them to her favorite outdoor market. She found a man selling
piraqua — snow cones — from a cart. Enrique ordered lemon,
and Matino chose grape. Their aunts rested on a bench.
The cousins ate their cones and looked at the other carts.
Each cart sold an array of colorful things.
“I really want to go to Sports City today,” Matino said as
they looked at the carts. “Will you come with me, Enrique?”
At the market, Matino and
Enrique plan where to go next.
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“Okay, but tomorrow we have to go to the beach.”
Aunt Isabel wanted to show the boys more of Old San Juan.
“Don’t you want to see the old fort?” she asked. “You could
have fun exploring it. You could see where Spanish soldiers
guarded the fort.”
“We have a whole week to see it,” Matino said.
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you two to venture off
on your own,” Aunt Isabel said. “You don’t know your way
around. You might get lost.”
“Don’t worry about us, Tia,” Enrique said. “We are only
going to Sports City. Then, we’ll come right home. Remember,
back home we take the subway to school. Plus, we speak very
good Spanish.”
The two aunts finally agreed. “Be back by six o’clock and
no later,” Aunt Julia ordered. She and Isabel made sure the boys
got on the right bus. The aunts waited until the bus left before
they started walking again.
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Chapter Four
Lost in Carolina
The boys sat in the front of the bus. “What’s so great
about Sports City?” Enrique asked. “It sounds like it’s just a big
sports gym.”
“It was Roberto Clemente’s idea,” Matino said. “My father
promised to take me there. But then he got cancer.”
“Your dad really liked Clemente, didn’t he?”
Enrique asked.
“He was my dad’s only hero. The great number 21 . . .”
The bus driver turned onto the freeway. This highway
was only sparsely covered with traffic. Matino thought the trip
would take just half an hour. But after about 20 minutes,
the bus slowed down. Matino saw smoke coming from
the engine.
The driver turned off the freeway. “We have to
stop,” he announced. “The engine is too hot. I’ve called
the bus company. Another bus is coming. Sorry, folks.”
The driver parked the bus in a small shopping
center. Matino asked the driver how close they were
to Sports City.
The bus makes an
emergency stop because
the engine overheated.
8
“It’s just a few miles away,” the driver answered. “But it’s a
hot day. You should wait for the next bus.”
The boys sat with the other passengers under some palm
trees. They waited almost an hour. Then, the boys decided to
walk. Enrique went to buy some cold drinks from a nearby
store. Matino got directions from another passenger. They
walked on the sidewalk along the main road. Then, they took a
side road.
“Are you sure this is the right way?” Enrique asked.
“Yes, Enrique. The man said this road is the right way.”
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“But what if it’s the wrong road and we get lost?”
“It’s not the wrong road! He said turn right at the gas
station. There’s the gas station. So we’re turning right. Okay?”
There were no shade trees on this road. The paved road
soon became a dusty, dirt road. They passed repair shops and
stores of all kinds. Behind the shops were small houses and
farm fields.
They walked for another hour. They still didn’t see Sports
City. “I think we’re lost, Enrique.” His cousin nodded.
Then, the boys saw an old truck on the side of the road. A
man sat on a crate and waved to them. He sold fresh fruit from
the back of his truck. It was covered with a stiff, or rigid, canvas
top. “Ripe bananas,” he said, “and the sweetest melons and
mangoes on Earth.”
Matino and Enrique bought fruit from the man. Then,
they asked how to get to Sports City. The man wasn’t sure. He
looked one way and then another. Finally, he told the boys to
ask at the gas station they passed before.
Matino looked at his watch. It was already noon. They
must hurry. There was not much time left to visit Sports City.
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After walking for a long time,
Matino and Enrique know
they are lost.
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Chapter Five
Vera Helps The Boys
The boys were sad and tired. They turned to walk toward
the gas station. Then, a police officer on a bike came up behind
them. She slowed down and stopped.
Matino didn’t even say hello. He just called out, “Excuse
me. Do you know the way to Sports City?”
“Yes. I’m going there. Look past those trees. You can see
Sports City over there. I will ride slowly. Follow me. It is not
too far.”
Matino smiled. He was so happy now. Enrique looked
unsure. But he nodded okay.
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“My name is Vera,” the woman said. “My father works at
Sports City. I am eating lunch with him before I go to work.
Why are you two going there?”
“It’s Matino’s idea. He’s on a quest,” Enrique answered.
“A quest? Tell me about your search, Matino,” Vera said.
Matino liked Vera’s voice. He felt he could trust her, even if
they had just met.
“My father was born in Puerto Rico,” he said. “When he
was 11, he went to a baseball camp here in Carolina. The man
who ran the camp was Roberto Clemente.”
“Roberto Clemente?” said Vera. “He is one of my heroes.
A superstar!”
A police officer named Vera helps
the boys get to Sports City.
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“My father said Roberto didn’t act like a star. He was just
a good man, teaching kids to play baseball. My father said that
Roberto changed his life forever. But sometimes, I wish my
father had never met him.”
“Why?” Vera asked.
“Yes, tell us,” Enrique said. He wanted to know, too.
“My father didn’t spend much time with our family. When
he wasn’t working, he helped people in the neighborhood. He
helped with community projects. Sometimes, people phoned
him at night. They woke up the whole family.”
“What did they want?” Enrique asked.
“They needed help. They needed help to pay bills, places
to stay, and so on. Sometimes, they just needed him to listen to
their problems. One day, my mother got angry with my father.
She said, ‘You give our money to people we do not know. How
are we going to pay our bills?’”
Matino continued. “I really admired my father. But, I guess
I didn’t like to share him so much.”
“I can understand that,” Vera said. “Look. Here we are!”
They entered a large parking lot. A sign said, “Ciudad
Deportiva Roberto Clemente” — the Roberto Clemente Sports City.
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Chapter Six
Sports City
Vera went to get her father. As they waited, Matino and
Enrique looked at the statue of Roberto Clemente. The statue
showed him poised at bat. He looked ready to hit a home run.
“Okay, so he was a famous baseball player,” said Matino.
“But why did my father want to be like him?”
Enrique shrugged. He did not know why.
“Matino! Enrique! This is my father, Señor Martinez.”
The boys turned to see Vera and her father. Señor Martinez
looked like an important man. He was
very neatly dressed. He shook hands
with the boys.
“Welcome to Ciudad Deportiva,” he
said. “I am one of the directors. May I
take you on a tour?”
The boys quickly agreed. Señor
Martinez showed them the fields and
buildings that young people could use.
Then, they ate lunch. Señor Martinez
and Vera told the boys about Roberto
Clemente’s life. The boys listened closely.
Matino wants to know
why his father tried to be
like Roberto Clemente.
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“Roberto loved baseball. He wanted to give Puerto Rican
children a place to play ball,” Vera said.
“More importantly,” added her father, “he wanted to help
them succeed in life. Roberto said that hard work and honesty
were the keys to success.”
In his mind, Matino heard his father’s voice: Matino, you
must work hard to reach your dreams. Think of Roberto.
Vera’s father continued his story. “Roberto always tried his
best. He would defy racial discrimination. He did not accept
unfair rules that were based on prejudice. He did not worry
about consequences, or what might happen. He always helped
those in need.”
Kind of like my father, Matino thought.
Vera’s father gave the boys
Roberto Clemente shirts.
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“How did Clemente die?” Enrique asked.
“An earthquake hit Nicaragua in 1972. Roberto decided to
help. He loaded food and medical supplies onto a plane. Then,
he got on the plane, to go help in Nicaragua. But the plane was
old. It crashed into the ocean.”
Matino wanted to hear more about Roberto. But it was time
to go. Vera offered to take the boys to the bus stop. Before they
left Sports City, her father gave them each a new baseball shirt.
Each one had the number 21.
“That was Roberto’s number,” Señor Martinez said. “I hope
it brings you both good luck.”
The bus back to San Juan did not have any problems.
Before they reached San Juan, Matino saw some children
playing baseball on a side street. They had only simple,
rudimentary equipment. The batter used a broomstick for a bat.
But he still hit the ball hard.
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Matino is proud of the work of his
father and Roberto Clemente.
For a moment, Matino pretended that the batter was
Roberto Clemente when he was a boy. Then, Matino thought
of his father. Roberto had inspired his father to help others.
Matino saw his father in a new way. He knew why his father
had helped others.
Matino thought about what he had learned. Now, he felt
proud of himself, his father, and Roberto Clemente. Matino put
on his new baseball shirt. Number 21. It fit him perfectly!
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Responding
TARGET SKILL Cause and Effect Think
about Matino’s father and how he admired
Roberto Clemente. Then, copy the chart below.
In the left column, write details from Matino’s
father’s life. In the right column, list the effects
on Matino.
Cause: Details from
Father’s Life
Effects on
Matino
He liked baseball.
Matino likes baseball.
?
?
Write About It
Text to Self Do you think taking a trip can
change a person’s life? Why or why not? Answer
these questions in writing. Give examples to
support your opinion.
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TARGET VOCABULARY
array
poised
consequences
rigid
defy
rudimentary
immaculately
sparsely
permeated
venture
TARGET SKILL Cause and Effect Tell how events
are related and how one event causes another.
TARGET STRATEGY Visualize Use text details to
form pictures in your mind of what you are reading.
GENRE Realistic Fiction is a present-day story with
events that could take place in real life.
Write About It
In a famous quotation, Aung San Suu Kyi said,
“Please use your freedom to promote ours.”
What freedoms do you value most? Why? Write
a letter to the editor of a Burmese newspaper
explaining the freedoms you have and why they
are important to you.
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Level: X
DRA: 60
Genre:
Realistic Fiction
Strategy:
Visualize
Skill:
Cause and Effect
Word Count: 2,402
6.2.9
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN
Online Leveled Books
1032703
H O UG H T O N M IF F L IN