In Disney’s Encanto, it appears that Abuela Alma doesn’t receive a gift, but one detail reveals the Madrigal matriarch’s extraordinary power. Abuela Alma Madrigal (María Cecilia Botero) doesn’t understand her family’s unique gifts in Encanto. Abuela only knows that the Madrigals received a miracle after her husband sacrificed himself to protect her and their village. Following Pedro Madrigal’s death, Alma received a magical candle, an enchanted house, and her family members received supernatural abilities. For instance, Dolores (Adassa) has superpowered hearing, and Luisa (Jessica Darrow) is strong enough to move buildings by herself. However, though most Madrigals get a gift, Mirabel (Stephanie Beatriz), one of Alma’s granddaughters, doesn’t receive one.
The Encanto script reveals more about Abuelo Pedro’s sacrifice. During the song “Dos Oruguitas,” Alma explains her story to Mirabel, including the night Pedro died. According to the script, before Pedro confronts the Encanto marauders threatening his village, he looks at Alma, and his eyes say, “Everything will be okay.” The script adds that the look tells Alma that “she will survive” and their children will “have a better life.” The marauders even listen to Pedro Madrigal’s plea in the script, giving the desperate man false hope before attacking him.
In Encanto, one theory may reveal Abuela Alma’s power. Following Pedro’s death in the film, Alma receives the magical candle, the enchanted Casita, and mountains spring up around the villagers. These mountains could be Abuela’s gift. Alma wants nothing more than to keep her family safe from future harm and use the Madrigal family’s powers to help her village. The mountains and Casita almost serve as a cocoon for the family, locking the Madrigals away from the world. Abuela Alma even has mountains on her dress, symbolizing that her gift is the mountains’ protection.
The mountains on Abuela Alma’s dress are the biggest support for the theory. Throughout the film, the Madrigals’ clothing hints at their powers. For instance, Dolores has sound waves on her clothes, signifying her hearing, and Luisa has weights to represent her strength. Since Alma has mountains, her dress shows that her gift keeps her family safe. However, Alma’s dress also shows butterflies under the mountains, hinting at how the cocoon of protection also stifles her family’s growth. Fittingly, Mirabel’s clothes also have butterflies, indicating how she will help carry the family into the future and out of the cocoon.
Of course, the theory could be taking the symbolism too far. After all, even some of the most well-supported fan theories turn out to be false. But the film constantly uses butterfly and caterpillar imagery, even down to its Oscar-nominated song, “Dos Oruguitas,” which means “two caterpillars.” So it’s easy to make the case that Alma’s gift was a mountainous cocoon of protection for her family. It’s either that or Abuela Alma should think about changing her wardrobe in Encanto.