Morning Star

"Sơ, what is this?" He held the little creature gingerly as we paused from our shoveling. It's tongue shot out suddenly. Quang raised it closer to my face. We were preparing my little patch of land for springtime vegetables. His parents, aunts and uncles had come to fix our fence. The winds and storms had shaken it loose and eventually broken in many spots. They brought their kids with them. The kids brought their laptops and video games with them. Not Quang and Hồng. The siblings sped around the convent, looking at and touching everything. That was when they took me up on an offer of helping in the garden. More exactly, they were shoveling dirt into their shoes. They were both not more than ten years old. "Sơ, what is it?" he repeated. The thin strand-like creature remained erect instead of curling into a limp undulation. Its tongue shot out again. "It's a snake," I answered. "Are you sure?" he asked. "Yes." "Aaah!...

Clouds of white steam rose from the corner of the auditorium. There was a small huddle of people around it. I had risen to get some ice cream for dessert. One bowl remained and I decided to leave it for the dozens of little kids playing on the stage. They didn't seem aware this was the three-year anniversary meal of their grandpa's death. "Thank you, Sisters, for coming," Mrs. Lan murmured as we entered the hospital room. A profusion of wires and tubing was connected to Mr. Lan. That wasn't the surprising part. "The doctors were able to kill the cancer in his lungs. However, there was an infection and it is slowly eating up his tongue, and entering his brain," Danielle explained. Danielle was a nurse, lived out-of-state, and had flown in to be with her father in his last moments. Mr. Lan's mouth was open and his tongue was filled with bumps and holes. "Does he still understand?" Sr. Jacinta Ngân asked gently. "Yes. He just can...

"Why don't you go out and walk a little bit? The nurses don't let you do that?" He looked at me quietly. "Have you always lived in the Dallas area?" He stretched his muscular arms and nodded gently. "Well, Bryan, if you're still here next week, I'll come back to see you. I don't want to see you here since you want to go home, but I don't know if you're going home," I continued pleasantly. "What is your name?" he asked. It was the only question he asked in our conversation. "Janine." "Janine," he repeated with a soft smile. "Yes, Janine." One of the nurses had told me Bryan had complained no body cared about him. So, I stopped by his hospital room to visit. He had been there for five months. He said he hasn't been to church in a while. He didn't complain about his illness so I wasn't quite sure why his stay was lengthy. "Paraplegic" I gasped unconsciously. I had ar...

"Tell Sister why you didn't come to school." The mom pushed the seven-year-old boy forward. Sr. Jacinta Ngân actually did not know what the mom was saying since it was spoken in Spanish. Sr. Jacinta did know that the boy had missed the first day of Sunday school. The Spanish translator was late. "Something was in my nose," he slowly stated. "Something was in your nose?" Sr. Jacinta asked in wonder. Sr. Jacinta helps direct a Sunday School with a population of 1700+ students. She had heard all kinds of excuses. This was a new one for her. "Yes, it was running and running," he demonstrated with his quick fingers. "Oh, you were sick!" Sr. Jacinta replied. The little boy grinned and nodded vigorously. He wasn't the only one smiling. Photo credit: http://www.pollsb.com

"The bride and groom my be lassoed." I wasn't quite sure if I heard Fr. Frank correctly. I was in line Saturday afternoon for a confession and there was a wedding in the main sanctuary. Lassoed? I couldn't concentrate on my examination of conscience and peered through the church's columns. The couple was definitely tied together by a long string of beads. I found out later it was a rosary, a symbol of the union and protection of their marriage. It is not just a tradition of Catholic Hispanics, but of all Hispanics. Sometimes a cord is used and they are both entwined as a figure 8 loop around the couple's shoulders, "symbolic of their love...as they equally share the responsibility of marriage for the rest of their lives." More often than not, a rosary is used. To call upon the greeting that signaled a pregnancy. An unexpected pregnancy. And perhaps the end of a happy engagement. "Hail Mary... fruit of thy womb, Jesus." Would Jesus unite th...

"Anh ơi, em nè." Everyone broke into laughter as Sr. Marie Trang "pleaded" to be recognized. The close group of friends were at Quý Lành's 25th wedding anniversary celebration. The couple were also long-time catechists at Holy Martyrs Church and so our sisters were also invited to be part of the festivities. One of the guests suggested a game. Quý, the husband, would be blindfolded. All the females present would take turns holding Quý's hand. Quý would have to recognize his wife's hands. Quý, a practical jokester himself, quickly got the game started. "Anh ơi, em nè." "Honey, it's me," Sr. Marie Trang repeated in Vietnamese. Yet Sr. Marie's close impersonation of Lành's voice could not persuade Quý. The room vibrated with laughter as Quý turned down Sr. Marie and she left the line with a look of pretended sadness. The two had barely clasped hands when they embraced without a word. Everyone was amazed. And impressed. Th...

It has been a year over his death when I finally had a chance to visit his grave.  A small burnt piece of paper caught my eyes. Alleluia . Hebrew for "Praise the Lord!" Or its Christian meaning:  hope, new life, resurrection. Father Thaddeus Ban has always been a cordial priest. He was the always the first to give me a call when I came home to see my family. He was our parish priest and pastor. Our church was in the midst of tumultous transitions as several priest moved in-and-out in one year. "Father, how long will you stay?" I asked simply that summer eleven years ago. "Maybe a year," he replied. "And you're planning to build a new church?" I gasped. "It will be where the people are. I'll use any days the good Lord gives me." He was never transferred that year. Or the next. People couldn't persuade, frighten, or flatter him away from his vision. It was about a week before our new church would be conse...