AFTERLIVES. bucky barnes

"then repeat it all"

August 11, 1941

My Jamie,
I miss you vividly. It's so uncomfortable to not have you nearby, which is an odd thing to admit. Maybe I'll deny that I ever said that. I hope Shelbyville is treating you and Rebecca well. Send a picture or two lest I forget your face! I'm joking. How could I forget a face like that?
Is it nice to see family? Aunts and uncles? How many cousins do you have back there? Tell me all about them. Write it down in a letter and then repeat it all when you're back in Brooklyn. I can't wait to hear all about your visit.
And you still want to learn Spanish? I can't imagine why. I can't imagine where you'd use it. Lanying would tell you, as she's told me, that Mandarin is wholly more useful. Lots of people speak it, Teresa, she always says, Lots more than the people there are in Puerto Rico. She makes sense, because PR is a small place, but people speak Spanish out of PR. I speak Spanish here, although PR ought to be a bigger part of here, politically and all, but .... Sorry, I don't mean to go on a tangent, but I suppose if you're so interested in the language, we can start now.
Hola is hello. Adiós is goodbye. Nueva York is New York. Me llamo Teresa, Soy Teresa, is: my name is Teresa, I'm Teresa. You are hermoso, but I'll leave that one for you to figure out.
As for Jacobina, who you asked about so very many times in your last letter, she's great. The apartment is feeling very cramped, so I do miss when she was at school everyday. Our one bedroom was not meant for four people, but it's warm enough out that I can (and often do) fall asleep on the fire escape. I can already hear your safety concerns. If you learn them in Spanish (en Español!) then maybe I'll listen. Lanying keeps telling us that she's dying soon, so maybe that'll open up some space. She's been having very spiritual dreams about it. I'll write you if they come true.
Safe travels, Jamie. I'll see you when you're back in Brooklyn.
Yours,
Teresa.

Hola Terry!
I used that right, didn't I? I am well. I would say that it's nice to be around family, which it is, but I'm surrounded by family in Brooklyn, too. I think that it's been nice for Becs, though. She has been off since New Year's. I figure it has something to do with Charlotte. My cousins, so many I don't know who I'm truly related to, are all wonderful. You ought to meet them one day.
And, Terry? Don't worry about the tangents. Like you said, I want you to write everything down and then repeat it all. Keep talking 'till you run out of words. I'm with you all the way. I'm interested in the language because I'm interested in hearing what you say. So, sí (?) you should keep going. Tell me more about everything.
I am going to save my thoughts on the fire escape until I get home to you, because you know I have at least a handful of thoughts about your living situation. I do hope that Lanying survives the rest of my trip, for both her food and company. Bronte still terrifies me.
I've attached pictures for you. Becs helped me choose and she sends her love.
Yours,
James.