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Miguel gathered his guitar and all the Ernesto de la Cruz albums he could carry and raced down from the rooftop. His family surrounded him when he reached the courtyard.
Abuelita’s eyes darted [1] from the guitar to the albums. “What is all this?” she said. “You keep secrets from your own family?”
“It’s all that time he spends in the plaza,”Tío Berto said.
“Fills his head with crazy fantasies,” Tía Gloria added.
“It’s not a fantasy!” Miguel protested [2] . He handed his father the old photograph of Mamá Imelda, Coco, and the unidentified [3] man and pointed to the guitar. “That man was Ernesto de la Cruz! The greatest musician of all time!”
“We’ve never known anything about this man. But whoever he was, he still abandoned [4] his family,” Miguel’s father said. “This is no future for my son.”
“But, Papá, you told me to look to the ofrenda. You said my family would guide me!Well, Ernesto de la Cruz IS my family! I’m supposed to play music!”
“Never! That man’s music was a curse [5] !I will not allow it!” Abuelita said, raising her voice.
“You will listen to your family. No more music,” added Miguel’s father.
“Just listen to me play—” “End of argument,”Papá said.
Miguel thought they’d change their minds if they heard him play. He lifted his guitar and prepared to strum, but Abuelita snatched it from his hands. She pointed to the photo. “You want to end up like that man? Forgotten? Left of your family’s ofrenda?”
“I don’t care if I’m on some stupid ofrenda!”The words burst out before Miguel could stop them. He couldn’t take them back, even though he wanted to.
The family gasped. Abuelita’s brow hardened [6] . She raised the guitar in the air.
“No!” Miguel cried.
“Mamá,” Miguel’s dad said just as Abuelita smashed [7] the guitar against the ground.
“There! No guitar, no music,” she said.
The entire family was silent as Miguel stared at his guitar, shattered [8] into a hundred pieces on the ground. Miguel couldn’t move—he felt like someone had smashed him to pieces.
“Oh, come,” Abuelita said to Miguel. “You’ll feel better after you eat with your family.”
“I don’t wanna be in this family!” Miguel yelled. He grabbed the photo from his father and bolted [9] out of the courtyard, alone.
Miguel raced into the streets of Santa Cecilia.Dante, who was nose-deep in an overturned [10] trash can, heard Miguel’s quick feet and ran into Mariachi Plaza after him. Miguel rushed up to a woman in a gazebo.
“I wanna play in the plaza. Like Ernesto de la Cruz! Can I still sign up for the talent show?”
“You got an instrument?” the woman asked.
“No. But—but if I can borrow a guitar—”Miguel stammered.
“Musicians gotta bring their own instruments,”she said, and turned to walk away. “You f ind a guitar, kid, and I’ll put you on the list.”
Miguel frowned. He needed a guitar. His eyes darted around the plaza. There were tons of musicians roaming [11] around, readying themselves for a busy Day of the Dead. He approached every mariachi, hoping for a lucky break, but no one would help him.
Disheartened [12] , Miguel found himself in front of the Ernesto de la Cruz statue. “Great-Great-Grandfather,” he said softly. “What am I supposed to do?” His gaze fell on a plaque [13] at the base of the statue that read “seize your moment.” Miguel looked at the photo in his hand. He moved his thumb to reveal the skull guitar. At that moment,f ireworks exploded [14] overhead, illuminating [15] the statue.
Miguel had an idea.
[1] dart v. （目光）投射
[2] protest v. 抗议
[3] unidentified adj. 未知的；身份不明的
[4] abandon v. 抛弃
[5] curse n. 诅咒
[6] harden v. 硬化；变冷酷
[7] smash v. 撞击；打碎
[8] shatter v. 使破碎，碎裂
[9] bolt v. 冲出
[10] overturned adj. 翻倒的
[11] roam v. 闲逛
[12] disheartened adj. 灰心的，沮丧的
[13] plaque n. 饰板，牌匾
[14] explode v. 爆炸
[15] illuminate v. 照亮