Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Unlikely Wrapping Paper

Well—
they were told
a gift was on its way
and being of proper breeding
they sought
shiny wrapping paper
bow with finesse
impossible to miss.

Too preoccupied looking for sheen
they missed
the cloak of a teenage girl
passing by that busy morn
the cry of a baby
from a not-too-distant cave
the unmistakable scent
of two turtledoves
offered up
on an altar
that other day.

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Inez

Inez is a tall, jet-black haired woman from Central Mexico. She is big-boned, in serious "work" mode most of the time, but she is all wide smile when she grins. Today, sitting with her in the brisk cold air on the picnic bench at lunch, I had the opportunity to hear more of her story, and was amazed at her courage in moving to a new country when she was settled in her old.

It was the year 2000. Or likely, 1999 when she started pondering coming because January 2000 was when she crossed the border to go north. I don't know how she orchestrated her visa and work permissions, but 4 months after she passed over, she got a job as a production lady at B. Her brother had been inviting her for years to visit the States for a vacation, but she had never felt compelled to come--she wasn't a fan of English, what would she do in America? But when her friend suggested moving to the U.S. for three years, she thought, why not? Her friend came too, but left after two years. Inez came and never moved back. It's been 14 years. She was 24; she is now almost 38. I wonder what moved her here--she had a comfortable life working at a bank, family around her, had just finished college. What moved her from zero interest in visiting America to moving here for 3 years, just to check it out? And now loving it so much that she wouldn't go back? When she came, she was amazed by the big city, in awe. She asked her brother about different places to visit, and he told her that he didn't know about them because he never went there. She was not him--she couldn't wait to check out all these new places, and hopped on buses to get there.

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Making a Fool

"If the truth is worth telling, it is worth making a fool of yourself to tell." ~Frederick Buechner

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Stillness

Well. There’s the moment after you’ve said it--those words that he didn’t want to hear, in the quiet of just before sunset:

“I’m sorry, we can’t help you.”

He leaves, wordlessly, in a huff. Shortly thereafter, you hear the sound of an empty soda bottle clattering to the cement ground. You wonder if you made a mistake--what you said, or how you said it. You briefly reconsider if you should’ve said instead:

“I’m sorry, sir, but you are mistaken. You did come here on Monday night and made the same request. The pastor helped you with $100 out of his own pocket. How can we trust that you are telling the truth now?”

What is the truth? Did he just forget that he came here on Monday night? He insisted multiple times that he had never been here before. Did I turn away a father in a dire time of need, when he needed a mere $136 to cover the remaining cost for catheters and saline solution for his poor tracheotomy-tube breathing one-year-old son? Or was this another ploy, albeit all the more convincing because his level of detail about the situation and his seeming earnestness about his son? Is it possible that this is another Anthony Ramirez who happens to have the same situation? Why can’t I sense when someone is lying to me? Shouldn’t I just know?

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Job update: Possibilities

Today, while I was packing up my parents' stuff, I received a phone call from a 323 area code. I was initially suspicious that it was a sales call, but it turned out to be from Goodwill regarding the Employment Services Specialist job I had applied for a couple weeks ago. A couple questions later, I was scheduled for a 10am interview this Friday. Wheeeeeeeeee!!!!

Also, I had a promising Friday last week--encouraging meeting with my AppleOne temp agency consultant, Baina, who was super attentive in wanting to place me strategically. Afterwards, I jetted over to Bioseal for an interview-of-sorts with the president, who happens to be an elder of the church I work at. They want me to fill several holes there--website content management, sales support, office work. It was so comfortable talking with people who know my work and want me there; I didn't have to prove myself. I should be hearing from them in a week. 

The ball is rolling! To where? Who knows!

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Goodwill Employment Services Specialist

Filled out a job application for Goodwill--Employment Services Specialist in LA. 

Other exciting news? I got free alcohol-free mouthwash from the dentist today. It almost makes up for needing to get dental work. Almost. 

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Resurrection Nonsense


The words sounded to them like nonsense.

Well—of course.
What babble could be believed
             from the mouths of these addled women?
What did such female folk know of the Lord
What words could they speak of the Word
that cohered
and congealed
into a meaningful, life-giving sentence?

But what is true
is what seems so radical,
yet is truly the root
of all true faith.

The radical, insane women
speak the most radical truth of them all,
the crux of our faith—
the curse of the cross
broken by the resurrection.
The women’s words are
no babble.
Indeed, the Babel curse is
triumphed over
as words now bring life
and reconciliation, not
condemnation.
Bending into the tomb
a shaft of light pierces
Peter’s brain.
Perhaps
new life is here.