I wanted to work

I grew up in San Antonio. We were a very happy family until the second Monday of December-- I was only 12- My father and I had to go downtown, " Texas begins laughing, " Poor daddy- he was the worst driver that I've seen until now, he was driving so carelessly that I was terribly scared, when he raced through the stop light, the cops appeared, next they checked our documents and sent back us to Mexico. My mother stayed in the U.S. to work hard. My father couldn't help thinking her- He tried to cross the border several times, he didn't succeed however. So he was sitting alone, smoking cigarette all the time until he passed away. Now my mother lives in California, she became a U.S. citizen recently."

Uncle Larry's eyes sparkle with excitement, " California? I also live there- Then your mother sent you an invitation letter and you went there to see her?" Texas angrily drops his lighted cigarette onto the ground. " A letter of invitation?" he asks, grinding it nervously into the bumpy ground, " Man, you look like something from another world!" He lights the other cigarette and continues, " A visitor's visa wouldn't much help- well, I wasn't a tourist. I wouldn't like to visit there in six months, I wanted to stay there forever. However, I missed my mother, too. Poor mother, she is all alone in a strange land."
_, "So, did you see her?"
Texas swallows hard and says, " No, I didn't. I never arrived in Los angles, because I was captured in the desert." Then he goes quiet, keeps on smoking.

The air is full of cigarette smoke. The blue smoke is freely curling up from his mouth, like the smoke from the chimney. Uncle Larry is watching the blue man through the haze of tobacco for a little while, finally he gets tired and asks, " How long haven't you seen her?"

Texas blows the smoke rings in his face, " For a long time, about thirty years." Larry's eyes starts burning and clouds with tears. Texas thinks Larry feels sorry for him, so tells with embarrassment, " I didn't mean to upset you. Please don't cry for me, Larry." and breathes out the other smoke ring, this time the smoke causes Larry to cough. Texas asks with a laugh, " How did you catch cold in this warm weather?"
_" No, I'm allergic to cigarette smoke." Uncle Larry replies, pointing at the smoke ring.
_" A thousand apologies. Smoking is very bad habit." Texas says as he puts his cigarette out. The fog finally vanished, and a bright smile emerges on Larry's face, " Thanks a lot. What hot weather we're having!"

Texas nods, " Yeah, the weather is even hotter than yesterday, it's usually too hot in August, " he sighs deeply, " Oh, what a busy line! I wish I had a cell phone, I must talk to my mother soon as possible, I must say I would never come to America- She's looking forward to seeing me. Will you get back again?"

-" Sure."
-" Yes, they all want to cross back to the States, but I. I have to forget America." Texas says, pointing at the people standing in line.

_, " Do you love to live there?"
_, " Yes, I love to."
_, " Why don't you like your country?"
_, " You're wrong. I love my native land."
_, " Then why you crossed the border?"
_, " What a question to ask! It's quite obvious, just for work. I wanted to work, but there was no work in the village. So I decided to immigrate. Unluckily, the numbers of jobs has fallen off in this year, we see every year fewer and fewer people in work, and wages, they've been frozen. I worked day and night, but I earned a little money."

_, " How sad! what did you do?"

Best Wishes

      M.T☺