Reyna Grande Rodríguez is four years old when her mother Juana, or Mami, leaves for the United States. Reyna has two older siblings, Mago and Carlos. Their father, Natalio—whom they call Papi—left for the States when Reyna was two. The children watch Mami pack her bags and beg to know when she’ll be back. They’ve heard about people going to the States, or El Otro Lado, “The Other Side” (2), to make better lives for their families. Papi left to make money so he could build his dream house in Reyna’s hometown of Iguala de la Independencia.

Mami takes the children to her mother-in-law Abuela Evila’s house, promising to be back within a year. The children wish they could stay with their maternal grandmother Abuelita Chinta instead, as Abuela Evila isn’t kind to them. She ridicules Mami often and makes mean comments when she drops off the children, too. Before Mami leaves she makes Mago promise she’ll take care of her siblings while she’s gone. Reyna and Carlos cry, but Mago doesn’t.

Reyna waits at Abuela Evila’s every day, hoping Mami will return. Meanwhile, the neighborhood children start calling Reyna and her siblings “orphans.” Reyna often gets upset and sometimes considers throwing rocks at the mean children.