Thursday, February 11, 2021
Tears from The Barrio
Rain falling upon the
gritty streets of the barrio.
While a Chicana, waits for
her man to come home.
She listens to music, with
a hopeful heart, as she irons
his shirt. She knows it wont
be long before she hears the
front door swing, wide open.
Their two kids are on the
sofa, watching TV, as she
casts an anxious glance out
the window.
Soon, she’ll throw her arms
around him, and she’ll see
him smile when he sees her
and the kids.
Tomorrow, is payday, she
thinks to herself, but sadly
she knows the money will
go mostly on bills.
First groceries, then the
electric bill, rent, and other
stuff, leaving very little for
the family to enjoy the things
they want.
But who cares, she thinks,
as long as they’re together
and healthy is all that really
matters.
Suddenly, she hears on the
radio that a young man was
just murdered in a robbery,
at the local store her husband
sometimes stops by on the
way home.
There is no description of
who the victim is until, the,
family is notified. Tears
fill her eyes as she hopes
that it was not her husband,
She calls his phone, but there
is no answer. She knows how
dangerous the barrio can be,
and longs with all her heart
to move to a better place.
She gets ready to go out and
look for her husband, when
suddenly, she hears the
sound of the old carcacha,
her husband jokes is his
his real sweetheart.
“Where were you?” Says,
the wife. “I’m sorry but I
have something to tell you.
over the years I have been
keeping a secret.”
“What is it? Don’t tell me
you found someone else?”
“Of, course not, you know
you are my only love!”
“Then what is it?” “Well.
I have been saving money
for some time now, and I
put that money as a down
payment on a new house.”
The wife was stunned,
“But how will we pay for
it?” “Don’t worry, we
will be okay, plus I’ll be
starting college classes
soon for becoming an
ultrasound technician,
and they make real good
money.
Most of all, I want to
prove my love for you
and the kids.”By this
time, the wife was
shedding tears which
mingled with the gentle
rain falling in the barrio,
As they both hugged each
other and the kids, they
said a prayer for the young
man, who was cut down in
a stupid, senseless robbery,
by an idiot too lazy to work!
Frank Solis 2021
All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, February 3, 2021
Pandemic Blues
A Father Lay Dying
The father and breadwinner
of the family lay alone in the
hospital bed. He was hooked
up to a ventilator and as a tear
fell from his eyes, he wondered
how his family would survive
the pandemic which has taken
so many lives.
Meanwhile, at home his wife
gathered her two teenage sons
and daughter around her. She
told them to be careful as they
were not out of the woods yet.
Even though the vaccines were
starting to get distributed, it still
did not mean that people were
completely safe as there was still
a chance one could become
infected.
People still had to wear masks and
stay at least six feet apart when
speaking with each other, as well
as wash their hands and use hand
sanitizer.
La abuela, who lived with them lit
up a candle to la Virgen de Guadalupe
for her son. A friend of the father had
been coughing and had a fever a few
days before the father had felt I’ll.
But, due to the Mexican machismo,
the father did not want to go to the
doctor. Then one night he began to
have labored breathing and the family
had to call 911.
The emergency room at the hospital
was getting filled when the family arrived,
to check on the father. But they were
told that he had been admitted and that
no one could see him.
Two weeks in the hospital and the
family received the good news that the
father would be home in another week
or so. The family was still in quarantine
even though they had tested negative.
Since they could not attend mass the
family prayed at home, and the kids
were doing their school work online.
They knew that Hispanics were the
ones getting hit the hardest by Covid
-19 so, they decided to avoid being
too close with other people.
This was the hardest part to bear as
Hispanics love to socialize But, it was
far more important to safeguard ones
health and they knew that whenever
things returned to normal, they would
all be better off.
So, the teens did online studies, played
board games, and spent time learning
new things on YouTube. They picked
up various skills just from watching
how to videos, and reading eBooks.
Even the mother picked up some new
cooking ideas and learned some cool
shortcuts for her sewing hobby. As for
the abuela? She still, keeps lighting a
candle to la Virgen, every chance she
gets, because that’s something that will
never change.
Frank Solis 2021
All Rights Reserved