Creative Responses
Desert Rubicon by Sheryl Clough Summer Issue 2021 Third Wednesday
In Memory of Peg Bowden, 1942-2020: "Dios te bendiga en tu viaje.*
Darkness as though stars had burned their last.
Icicles on saguaros dripping into sodden sand.
Javelinas roving, snuffling for fallen fruit.
Through this roadless murk stumbles
a figure forlorn as an empty wallet.
Frostbitten toes poke through holey shoes.
You, a gringa, start straight up in bed
at the midnight knock, knuckles on oak.
A weak voice: help me I am lost
and now the river must be crossed.
Your husband is still asleep and,
admit it, your first instinct
is to grab the phone and call la migra**
but years of nursing practice kick in,
and with a prickly spine you get up
and open the door. The skeletal figure
grabs the door frame for support.
Fighting your fear, you offer your arm
and take him to the kitchen for coffee
and reheated frijoles on tortillas. His
English and your Spanish are equally
halting, but with enough hand gestures
you both make meanings known.
The stranger sleeps on your sofa and
in the morning, your husband agrees
you must help this desperate one.
You volunteer in the following years
at El Comedor, an aid station for migrantes,
leading the way for a cadre of volunteers
to ford the stream dividing fear and love.
__________________
*God bless you on your journey.
** Border Patrol
In Memory of Peg Bowden, 1942-2020: "Dios te bendiga en tu viaje.*
Darkness as though stars had burned their last.
Icicles on saguaros dripping into sodden sand.
Javelinas roving, snuffling for fallen fruit.
Through this roadless murk stumbles
a figure forlorn as an empty wallet.
Frostbitten toes poke through holey shoes.
You, a gringa, start straight up in bed
at the midnight knock, knuckles on oak.
A weak voice: help me I am lost
and now the river must be crossed.
Your husband is still asleep and,
admit it, your first instinct
is to grab the phone and call la migra**
but years of nursing practice kick in,
and with a prickly spine you get up
and open the door. The skeletal figure
grabs the door frame for support.
Fighting your fear, you offer your arm
and take him to the kitchen for coffee
and reheated frijoles on tortillas. His
English and your Spanish are equally
halting, but with enough hand gestures
you both make meanings known.
The stranger sleeps on your sofa and
in the morning, your husband agrees
you must help this desperate one.
You volunteer in the following years
at El Comedor, an aid station for migrantes,
leading the way for a cadre of volunteers
to ford the stream dividing fear and love.
__________________
*God bless you on your journey.
** Border Patrol
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This child from Chicago speaks from the heart to migrant children in Arizona. The note below accompanied a box full of toys that arrived at The Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in December 2019: I hope you 'lovv' these toys Just like I did. They will give you company when you need it. I wish you the 'vary' best. |
Loving Mercy: The Story of an Immigration Advocate
by Sharon Proctor December 21, 2019 Adventist Peace Fellowship
Proctor, moved by her first borderlands experience in 2011 and by her deeply held religious values, clarifies why some feel drawn to help immigrants.
by Sharon Proctor December 21, 2019 Adventist Peace Fellowship
Proctor, moved by her first borderlands experience in 2011 and by her deeply held religious values, clarifies why some feel drawn to help immigrants.
Migrant Responses
by Steve Karamitros November 26, 2019 Poets Reading The News
Karamitros, after experiencing cross-planting with artist Alvaro Enciso in the Arizona desert, creatively projects a migrant's thoughts and feelings in this poem.
by Steve Karamitros November 26, 2019 Poets Reading The News
Karamitros, after experiencing cross-planting with artist Alvaro Enciso in the Arizona desert, creatively projects a migrant's thoughts and feelings in this poem.
Border Trip Notes
by Ken and Gabe Zimmerman August 2019
Reflections on Our Border Town
by Gail Frank May 2019
by Ken and Gabe Zimmerman August 2019
- Ken and Gabe, father and son, share their insights after visiting the Borderlands. One of their most meaningful experiences was by using their language and legal skills to assist asylum seekers under the Kino Border Initiative program.
Reflections on Our Border Town
by Gail Frank May 2019
- Gail, who has a theatre background, comments on the high quality and impact of this Tucson High School play about Samaritans and others who help make our borderlands a safe and humanitarian place to live. Below, two of our Samaritans, Laurel Grindy and Paul Nixon, pose with the cast. A few Samaritans and other volunteers were quoted in the play.
Water for the Journey
by Laurie Jurs and others January 2019
by Laurie Jurs and others January 2019
- They wrote this song during Tish Hinojosa's song writing workshop at Common Ground on the Border. It was inspired by the convictions of the No More Death volunteers; they left water out on the Cabeza Prieta Refuge near Ajo.
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I've Seen the Wall from Both Sides Now by Kris Baldwin February 2019
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Six Rows of Razor Wire by Roberto Coughlin Februrary 2019 Roberto lives in Ohio. His poem was inspired by a photo that Samaritan Rita Danks sent him. |
Sun, Moon, Stars and Wind: Remembering Miguel
by Marie Vogl Gery October 2018
by Marie Vogl Gery October 2018
- A poem honoring 26-year-old Miguel Vasquez Lara, whose body was found in Green Valley on 4/29/11.
No Answers - Now or Ever
by Marie Vogl Gery April 2016
by Marie Vogl Gery April 2016
- On Sept. 19, 2005, a baby boy was born & died at milepost 19 on the Arivaca Rd. In late 2015 he was identified as “Arizaga.”
Blues for Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez
by Laurie Jurs March 2016
A blues song about a local 16-year old boy and his tragic death, which is described in Paul Ingram's Waiting for Justice
by Laurie Jurs March 2016
A blues song about a local 16-year old boy and his tragic death, which is described in Paul Ingram's Waiting for Justice
The Boy Who Had No Shoes
by Gail Balden May 2013
by Gail Balden May 2013
- A ten-year old at El Comedor shows his courage and humanity.