“She still thought I was in Iraq.”

Hector Vega and his wife, Leopoldina, remember the day Hector returned home from war.

Listen to

Recorded in New York, NY

Credits

Produced by Michael Garofalo.

Facilitated by Nadia Reima.

Transcript

Click here to read the transcript for this story.

Interview transcript

Hector Vega (HV): When I got to the Bronx where I live, I called my wife, I still didn't tell her I was in the States. She still thought that I was in Iraq. Ah, I live on the first floor. She was in the kitchen and I'm standing underneath my window and I'm speaking to her, I'm talking as if I'm in Iraq and I told her that I had just gotten off the phone with my mother and something happened in the neighborhood, what's going on? And she goes, "no nothing happened here...

Leopoldina Vega (LV): And he said, "yeah my mother said something...

HV: I said, "well look out the window",

LV: He said look out the window. look out the window...

HV: She look out the window and I'm coming out, my uniform, in crutches,

LV: And I was cooking in this moment

HV: She was cooking...

LV: Spaghetti, and camar