In this unusual, magical realistic, memoir, Dr. Irene I. Blea shares frequent conversations with award-winning author, Rodolfo Anaya, who died in 2022. They were friends for over forty years, shared working on the University of New Mexico campus, and lived near one another. Anaya is best known for his book, Bless Me Ultima. In this volume, Dr. Blea recalls platicas, conversations, with her friend, Rudy, about the essence of his writing, growing up in New Mexico, the nature of university life, the art and business of writing, publishing, death, dying, and spirituality. Blea, also an award-winning author and a sociologist, draws from their shared community understanding, and her ability to write in a multidisciplinary manner to poetically close the gap between literature and social science t