When Marichuy was born, her mother—believing she was on the verge of death—handed her over to a priest, who took her to an orphanage. At the age of fourteen, Marichuy ran away from the institution and began wandering from place to place, scraping together a living however she could. Years later, she was attacked by a drunkard; the incident left her harboring resentment toward men and plagued by harrowing nightmares.