At the Angela de Hoyos Tribute last night...




Some of the writers and artists present:
Vangie Vigil
Norma Cantu
Rosie Castro
Carmen Tafolla
Juan Rodriguez
Reyes Cardenas
Nephtali De Leon
Bryce Milligan
Enedina Casarez-Vasquez
and even Julian Castro
the Mayor of San Antonio
showed up.








"WILL NOT HARM THE OZONE"

(for Tato Laviera, with infinite thanks
for the inspiration)

C-a-r-n-a-a-a-l-i-t-o-o-o-o-o-o-o!
Donde 'stas, manito?
llevo horas enteras buscándote. . .
Carnalitoooooooooooo!!! ontás???
Antier también te me perdiste. Sure I know
y'said you was gonna play baseball
con los Rodríguez,
but they told me they hadn't seen you, guy.
Next day, te encontré
in that vacant lot on Colima Alley
but you just walked away aimlessly,
todo ahuitado,
your eyes like splintered glass
la boca de espuma
babbling like crazy
something about how you had seen
Death and the fires of hell.
Right off I knew
you'd been at it again
getting high en ese pinche maldito spray. . .
Y luego te enojaste conmigo
cuz I went and told Amá.
Jiiiiilo, y'shoulda seen her face
when I told her, chavalito.
La cara se le puso ceniiiiiza
y se le rodaban
las lagrimas l á g r i m o t a s
de tristeza o coraje o miedo
—maybe all three.
Pos ella bien que se friega
amarrada a la costura
pa' mandarnos al escuelin.
Y tú?. . . . . playing hookie
perdido en el callejón.
Chale, manito!
Nomás ya no!!!
I don't wanna have to
tell 'er again
that I found you


sniffing paint again
please! not high again
on your fantasy trip
lost to the world.
No quiero verte again
en ese enorme
huevo plástico
tied to the umbile
of the world
with grinning Death
hovering over you
as you whirl
round and round
in your weird orbit in space.
Yes I know, manito, you read the label.
It says: WILL NOT HARM THE OZONE.
But what is it doing to you?

what  is   it   doing  to   you?

by Angela de Hoyos

(From Puerto del Sol, Special Caló Supplement,
Ed. Jim Sagel, Vol. 27, No.1, Spring 1992;
New Mexico State University, English Dept.;
Las Cruces, New Mexico 88003)

M&A Editions ©1993