African Passions

African Passions Summary | Detailed Summary

The beginning lines of Beatriz Rivera's African Passions reveal that Teresa knows that Armando, her live-in Cuban boyfriend of 14 years, is pretending to be asleep. Armando continues to ignore Teresa's attempts to wake him when she threatens that she will do something crazy. Teresa does nothing physically. She instead prays to the African powers of Santeria, a religion she abandoned when she moved from her old, poor neighborhood to the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Although Teresa is torn between anger and sadness at Armando's behavior, her prayer is only for immediate pleasure. The African powers of Santeria are a group of eight powers that are invisible and unheard by human beings. They emerge from spices and jewelry into the unseen world of Teresa and Armando. Each has its own personality and human characteristics. They use their power to cast spells that influence the tangible world of humans to help Teresa.

Babalu Aye is a jealous power intent on making Teresa miserable. He complains about Teresa's last-minute request that he help her and often attempts to do horrible things to Teresa, like trying to make her die of gangrene. Eleggua is a decent power that has always tried to help Teresa. He also has a hunger problem; he wants to eat everything he sees. Orula is the clairvoyant power married to the feminine power Yemaya. Shango, accused of trying to rape Oshun, the free spirited, party-loving power, loves fire. Obatala is the power described as a virile warrior. Ogun, the eighth power Teresa calls upon, is the power described as bloodthirsty.

These powers show up in Teresa's apartment just as her cat, Gato, bothers her for food. Teresa puts Gato's food dish on the windowsill, and Gato eats from the window. Teresa admits the windowsill is a dangerous spot for a cat to eat, but she believes that cats don't fall. Teresa is not worried about Gato. Gato has been living with Teresa and Armando since they moved in together. Gato was in the middle of the street when Teresa and Armando started moving their things into their apartment. Both she and Armando fell in love with the cat that day, so they keep him.

While Gato is eating in the kitchen, Teresa takes this opportunity to enjoy Armando's presence and find out whether anything is bothering him. After spending every weekend for almost six months alone while Armando traveled for work, Teresa misses Armando and tries hard to get him to open up. A month earlier he told her to reserve this weekend so that they could talk, and so far Armando has not had much to say. She hopes they will talk about finally going through with the plans to marry that they had first discussed when they moved in together. Armando continues to ignore Teresa with his sleepy act.

Teresa wants to marry Armando. Although they are ten years apart in age and come from very different backgrounds, Teresa is still madly in love with him. Armando comes from a rich Cuban family. Teresa comes from a poor New Jersey neighborhood. Her mother was a maid and her father a plasterer and toilet cleaner before they decided to buy a Laundromat. Armando has brought up several times that his family does not want him to marry Teresa because her family is from a lower socio-economic level. At the beginning of their relationship, Armando did not care that Teresa's family was poor, but as time passed, it started to bother him. At one point in the relationship Armando even broke up with Teresa to marry someone else. After seeing Teresa begin to date other men, Armando went back to Teresa. Since that time he has made excuses to keep from taking Teresa to be his wife. To avoid hearing her parents' disapproval of her and Armando's living together, Teresa tells her parents that she and Armando are already married.

During Armando's sleeping act and Teresa's thoughts about all that has happened in their relationship in the past, Yemaya gives Armando a stomachache. Teresa offers to fix Armando coffee. Armando agrees and uses Teresa's absence as an opportunity to make a phone call. He tells Teresa not to come in until he is off the phone. Three of the African Powers, Orula, Ogun, and Babalu, push Gato off of the windowsill. Teresa is horrified to find that Gato had fallen off of the windowsill and down nine floors. The super calls and tells Teresa that Gato is dead but still intact. Teresa, forgetful of Armando's request to stay out of the room, walks into the room while Armando is still on the phone. Armando is whispering and smiling into the phone's receiver when he discovers Teresa has walked in on him. For a split second Teresa thinks she sees a "sex-guilt" look on Armando's face. In her mind she starts to question why he looks so guilty if he is taking a business call, but the power of Orula erases Teresa's need to question Armando about it.

Teresa leaves the room and picks up Gato from the super downstairs. When she returns to the apartment, she tells Armando that Gato is dead. Armando is upset and suggests they drive some place and bury him. After shooting down Armando's suggestions to bury Gato on a golf course or in the Bronx, Teresa and Armando head to Robert Moses State Park. Teresa comments, "This weekend's turning into a funeral."

While on the ride to the state park, Teresa asks Armando what his mother's message on the answering machine was about. Armando's mother seemed happy to be visiting Armando. Teresa does not understand why she is happy because she has always shown hatred toward Teresa because of her poor upbringing. Armando dismisses Teresa's questions, saying that his mother likes Teresa, contrary to what she thinks. He did not tell her his parents were coming into town because he thought she didn't want to see them. Teresa suggests that Armando stop and get a shovel and box to bury Gato in. After buying the shovel and box and fixing a flat tire caused by the powers, Armando casually tells Teresa that his parents are meeting him in Virginia. While Teresa is questioning this, Armando suggests that Teresa dig the grave for Gato. He will stay in the car and keep a watch out for police. Once Teresa has dug the grave, he will go bury Gato. This frustrates Teresa but she agrees.

Three different policemen stop Armando in the car while Teresa is attempting to dig a grave for Gato at different sites. Teresa and Armando head down the road further in search of a place to bury Gato without being stopped by police. Armando is following the map. When the roadmap changes colors from blue to orange, he tells Teresa that he is getting married to someone else. He says he has always dreamed of getting engaged and playing golf at an exclusive country club with his future father-in-law. He tells Teresa that this dream would not come true if he married her because her father works at a Laundromat. He goes on to tell her that he has had the opportunity to play golf with his new fiancye's father in Virginia, and he loved it. Armando's parents are coming to Virginia to meet his new fiancye.

The only reaction Teresa has to Armando's news is silence. Teresa and Armando look for a place to bury Gato until it gets dark outside. Teresa and Armando have no luck finding a burial site. They take Gato back to the apartment with them. In the elevator on the way up to their apartment, Armando is holding Gato and wondering how soon Teresa is going to find another man. Teresa stands next to him in the elevator praying that the African powers help her get over Armando.