February 6, 2010

After our time at the abortion mills yesterday the three of us met, as usual, at La Rosita where, as usual, we gave out diapers and groceries to four orfive mothers who met us there.  I then drove to the west side to make a delivery to a mom there, while Anne and Alicia went in the other direction, to Mexican town, to visit our friends Ana and Carmelo in their new home.  Later, when I had finished my errand, I drove back downtown to meet them there.  This home is theirs, not rented, and they are very proud of that.  And knowing that they purchased it for just a few thousand dollars, I was prepared for something a little rough–but not as rough as I found it.  The interior is a shell.  There are no finished walls and no finished floors.  Wiring is only half completed, and the bare wires run along the floor and up the walls.  There are no windows on the first level.  Those that were there have been removed and are boarded over.  There is no shower.  The family members shower in the basement with a bucket.  There is no kitchen.  There is a room with a  stove in it, but the room has no water lines and no sink. 

They were very glad to see us, though, and as soon as I walked in Ana insisted on feeding me.  She set me down at a little folding table and gave me one of the two chairs that i saw in the house.  She gave me a taco with onion and cilantro and tomato, all flavored with lemon.  Some of the kids stood or perched around me, to see what I would think of their momma’s cooking.  And then, just before we left, the baby woke up and one of the older daughters brought him in.  And as I looked around at the bare poverty, it occurred to me that nothing was lacking in the picture.  The family was complete.