so we would't have to move each year. And our house would have running water and pipes that worked. And inside it would have real stairs, like the houses on TV. And we'd have a basement and at least three washrooms,so when we took a bath we wouldn't have to tell everybody. Our house would be white with trees around it, a great big yard and grass growing without a fence. This was the house Papa talked about when he held a lottery ticket, and this was the house Mama dreamed up in the stories she told us before we went to bed. But the house on Mango Street is not the way they desribed it at all. It's small and red with narrow steps in front, and windows so small you'd think they were holding their breath. There is no front yard,only four little trees the city planted on the side of the street. Out back is a small garage for the car we don't own yet,and a small yard that looks smaller between the two buildings on either side. There are stairs in the house, but they're ordinary stairs, and the house has only one washroom. Everybody has to share a bedroom.Mama and Papa, Carlos and Kiki,me and Nenny.