Summary

In “Hunting for the Kissing Bug,” in grade school, Hernández researched “dream interpretation” (103). The women in her family believe in the prophetic rather than metaphorical significance of dreams (103). One night following Tía Dora’s death, Liliana called Hernández to say she had had a dream that Tía Dora looked at her “but . . . didn’t say anything” (103). Hernández understood that Liliana wanted the dream to mean Dora was protecting her (104). In Hernández’s culture, women are meant to have “power even against death” (104). After hearing one of Auntie Biblia’s dreams, Hernández realized the “common language of dreams is our fears” (105).

Hernández traveled to the Texas A&M College Station campus (106). She convened with researchers Adam Curtis and Justin Bejcek. Together, the group studied ticks and kissing bugs...