Extreme Change

by Gary Beck

  "It’s great to see them running around without anybody shouting at them," Beth remarked.

  Hector agreed, "Yeah. We should bring them here every day."

  "We may not be able to bring them every day, but let’s do it whenever we can," said Kiesha. The boys had divided into two teams and were playing some kind of tag game. When a player was captured, his teammates could free him if they weren’t caught approaching the tag jail. The adults watched for a while but were unable to figure out the exact rules. This didn’t disturb the boys in the least, who played with a maximum of exuberance and a minimum of disputes. The girls were far more sedate, taking turns pushing each other on the swings and conversing intensely. When it was time to leave it took a while to round up the hooligans, but even they finally acknowledged they had enough and were ready to go.

  The children had really burned up their stored energy and they were very subdued on the way back to the hotel. A store window on the corner of 5th Avenue and 26th Street had a Harry Potter display in the window. The children stopped and gaped with fascination at the colorful illustrations of the boy wizard. Then they started mumbling that they were hungry, so Beth and Kiesha stopped in the deli across from the hotel and bought sandwich meat, cheese, salad, potato chips and chocolate cupcakes for dessert. The clerk tried to hassle her about the food stamps, but Peter had warned her. Not only did she easily handle him, but she didn't even let him overcharge her for using food stamps. The children wolfed down two sandwiches each, albeit of different sizes depending on their age, desperately tried to resist eating salad, devoured potato chips, then gobbled the chocolate cupcakes with vanilla cream filling. The older boys tried to con the younger ones out of their cupcakes to no avail, and the children finally retired to their dens, sated, tired and not entirely unhappy.

  The adults discussed dinner arrangements and Miss Lily said she would cook on the hotplate in her room, once they had supplies. Beth and Kiesha made a shopping list for dinner with Miss Lily and asked the others for suggestions for what else they could get at the supermarket. Once the list was done, they made plans for Tuesday, since they assumed that the Monday holiday would be just like a Sunday. On Tuesday, Peter would go to work, while the others would take the children to school and register those who were eligible. Miss Lily suggested that after they were finished with school registration, they find some local thrift shops and get silverware, pots, plates, glasses and clothing for anyone who needed things. Kiesha brought up the idea that one of the rooms should be used for the boys to play in, and one for the girls, so they could be supervised from the hall. This gave Beth an idea that they should get acquainted with their neighbors on the floor. Kiesha agreed and they were about to go knock on doors, when Miss Lily said, "Why don’t Peter and Hector go buy an iced tea mix and a big bag of cookies. We can invite the neighbors to join us after dinner for a little get together in the hall."

  Dinner was basic due to a shortage of pots and utensils, just canned ravioli eaten in shifts, but they finally managed to feed the children, clean up the considerable mess, and appoint Jennifer and Latoya to read stories to the rest of the children. Then the adult shift ate. After dinner, Miss lily prepared the iced tea and cookies, while Beth and Kiesha went to invite their neighbors. The rooms right next to them were either empty, or the residents wouldn’t answer to their knock. They were halfway down the hall before they got a response.

  "Who is it?" a timid voice asked.

  "We’re your new neighbors down the hall," Beth explained. "We want to invite you to join us for iced tea and cookies." There was a long silence.

  "I can’t. Maybe some other time."

  They knocked on several more doors without getting a reply, then a gruff voice answered, "Who?" Beth explained, but the only answer they got was a gruff, "Go way."

  Beth raised her eyebrows at Kiesha, who shrugged, "If she don’t want to come to our party that’s her business." Only one other person answered the knock, but she wouldn’t open the door and she said no.

  As they walked back to their side of the hall, Kiesha whispered, "There’s a lot of strange folk on our floor."

  "I wonder why?"

  "I guess we’ll find out."

  The children had already adapted to their new home and played quietly together after dinner, then went to bed with a minimum of fuss. Although they never got the promised cots from the day manager, yet another Mr. Singh, the boys had no complaints, and worn out from the park romp, they quickly fell asleep. The adults visited for a while in the hall, discreetly chatting in whispers, then went to their own rooms. Beth and Peter went into the bathroom, locked the door and made love perched on the toilet seat. When Beth felt Peter getting ready to ejaculate, she slipped off him and helped him climax with her hand. He wasn’t fully satisfied, but she reminded him that she didn’t dare risk becoming pregnant and he said he understood. They exchanged lover’s silly sentiments as they washed and got ready for bed. Beth mentioned that they should get pajamas ASAP and Peter said he would arrange to go to their apartment and get clothing, towels and kitchen supplies. They lay down on the bed and idly reviewed plans for the holiday on Monday and the workday Tuesday, and they soon fell asleep.

  They woke up several hours later to the loud blare of rap music. Beth looked at her watch and saw it was about the same time that the music had started the night before. They weren’t sure what to do about it and Peter said, "Let’s see what the others want to do." They got dressed and went into the hall, where they were joined a few minutes later by Kiesha, Hector and Miss Lily. They discussed the noise and concluded that since this was a holiday weekend and a Saturday night, people upstairs somewhere were partying. They agreed that it didn’t make sense to confront the partiers on a weekend, but Peter didn’t want to let it go completely. He went downstairs and complained to the ubiquitous Mr. Singh clone, but couldn’t get a satisfactory response other than the usual, "yes." He went back upstairs and expressed his irritation to the group. Hector wanted to go upstairs and ask the partiers to lower the volume, but the women didn’t want him to go and they persuaded him to ignore the noise.

  Later that night the disruption included yelling, screaming and what sounded like a big fight. Things finally quieted down about threea.m.and the new residents were able to sleep soundly, until they were awakened by the energized children. It took a while to get organized, but the group again went to breakfast at Macdonald’s, then to the park, where the children ran wild in the playground. This time the girls joined the boys in the tag game and they all had a fun time. When the children were played out, they went back to the hotel and had the same lunch as the day before. The establishment of a routine was very stabilizing for the children and even the adults were more relaxed. The boys played in Miss Lily’s room and the girls played in the Harmon’s room. The children seemed to have adapted to the small rooms and invented quiet games that didn’t disturb the adults. The afternoon was casually sociable. Existence was taking on a strange quality, as if they were living on a ship that let them ashore in foreign ports, then brought them on board again. Dinner was canned franks and beans, again served in shifts. When they went to bed early that night, the memory of the E.A.U. was fading and they felt that they had a little more control of their lives.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  The next night, rap music blasted them awake around 11:30 p.m. It was shocking, because they thought the weekend was over and had assumed the partiers would have ended their revels. Fortunately, the children slept the sleep of the innocent, but the adults were really aggravated. They conferred in the hall and Hector said that he was going upstairs to complain.

  Beth and Kiesha tried to dissuade him, but he was stubborn. "We got a right to have some quiet late at night. If those people want to party, let them go to a club or something."

  Beth sympathized, "We all feel the same way, but we don’t want you to get into a confrontation."

  "I can take care of myself," he muttered.

  Kiesha nodded, "We kn
ow you can. But we don’t know what’s going on up there. What if you get into an argument and get hurt?"

  Beth supported her, "Kiesha’s right. We should find out more about who’s doing it, before you go up there."

  Miss Lily had the final word, "Chile. You got those young uns to look after. Forget that trash upstairs for now." Hector reluctantly agreed and they went back to their rooms. The noise went on until about 3:00 a.m., then silence reigned for the rest of the night.

  The children were up early and roused the adults from their brief sleep, but it took a while for the creaky older bodies to get moving. They had breakfast at McDonalds, then Peter went to the radio station. The other adults looked up the address of the local school district in the phone book, then went to register the children. They passed a thrift shop on 3rd Avenue and 29th Street and made a note to go there on the way back to the hotel. The staff at the district administrative office were condescending and difficult to deal with. At first, they refused to enroll the children, claiming the term had already started. The group overcame that objection and were confronted with the next obstacle. They were told that only children who resided in the district were eligible for enrollment.

  A well-dressed black woman reviewed their applications and demanded proof of residency in the district. Beth showed her the letter from the Department of Homeless Services that assigned them to the King Charles Hotel. "A letter about a hotel is not proof of residence," the woman said. "We require a driver’s license, apartment lease or a utility bill, something that legally establishes your residence."

  "Our families were homeless and we just relocated in this neighborhood," Beth explained. "We don’t have the proof you mentioned, but we are living in the district."

  The woman was totally unsympathetic, "There’s nothing we can do until you get proof of residence."

  "What are our kids supposed to do till then?" Kiesha asked.

  "They can go to the last school attended."

  Kiesha started fuming and Miss Lily calmed her, "There ain’t no point gettin mad at her. She don’t count. We gotta speak to someone in authority who can help us, like the district superintendent."

  Beth understood and turned to the woman, "We’d like to speak to the district superintendent, please."

  This flustered her and she tried to brush them off, "He’s very busy and he can’t see you without an appointment."

  Hector smiled politely, "We’ll just wait here, until he can see us."

  Now the woman was getting uncomfortable, "That won’t be possible. You’ll have to call to make an appointment."

  Beth, now a veteran of a protest, said, "Either register our children, or we’ll wait here as long as it takes."

  "You can’t do that. This is a school district office."

  "We’re parents of school children who need to be registered."

  "I’ve already explained why that isn’t possible. Now you have to leave, or I’ll call security."

  Hector shrugged, "I guess we’ll have to sit-in here, until you let our children go to school."

  The woman went to a well-dressed Hispanic man who was working at a computer station and explained the situation. He came back to the front desk with her. "What seems to be the problem here?"

  "We want to register our children and this woman won’t do it," Beth answered courteously.

  "Ms. Pastor explained that you have to reside in the district and you have to present proof."

  Beth showed him the letter, "We reside in the district and this letter proves it."

  "I’m afraid that this letter isn’t legal proof."

  "That’s all we’ve got."

  "I’m sorry, but until you have proof there’s nothing we can do."

  "What about our children?" Kiesha asked. "Are they supposed to miss school because of a technicality?"

  "Those are the rules."

  Hector pointed to the children. "Those are our kids. They need to go to school. As I told this lady, we’re not leaving until you register them."

  "That’s very irregular."

  "We’re getting used to that," Hector replied. The man spoke to him in Spanish, but Hector said blandly, "I don’t speak Spanish."

  The man looked them over, assessing their determination, "Why don’t you wait for a few minutes and I’ll find out if there’s anything we can do."

  "Sure," Hector said. "We’re not going anywhere."

  The man went into an inner office and the group conferred. "I guess we’re going to have another sit-in," Kiesha said. "It would be nice if just once we could get some help without a struggle."

  Miss Lily disagreed, "It just makes us stronger, if we fightin for the kids."

  "It’s good training," Beth added. "We may have to deal with a lot of unpleasant situations until we settle our homeless problem." The children had been standing quietly next to their parents, but restlessness set in and they started wandering around the office. They peered at computer screens and asked one of the workers if they could play a video game.

  They poked around the desk tops, prompting Ms. Pastor to snap at Beth, "You should control your children. They’re disrupting our office routine."

  Beth didn’t get annoyed and raised her voice, "They need to attend school, so they can channel their energy constructively." Beth’s loud comment startled the district staff and they avoided looking at the parents who dared to make a fuss by demanding admission for their children.

  The Hispanic man came out of the inner office and spoke to Hector, as if trying to establish a man to man bond. "I discussed your case with the assistant superintendent, and she instructed me to tell you that we must follow our admission guidelines. Once you have proper proof of residency in the district, we will register your children."

  Hector shook his head. "That’s not good enough. What’s your name, please?"

  "Mr. Arrante."

  "Mr. Arrante. Our children need to go to school today."

  "That’s just not possible." Beth joined the discussion; "We presented you with official proof that we reside in the district. What more do you want?"

  Mr. Arrante answered in a patronizing voice, "You people are temporary residents in this district. You can’t expect us to accept temporary students."

  Kiesha was irritated, but remained cool, "We will be living in this district at least through the summer. That’s more than a full semester. Now we would like you to register our children."

  "I already told you that I can’t do that."

  Hector called the children, "Come here kids. We’re going to stay here for a while, until they let you go to school."

  Mr. Arrante was indignant, "You’ll have to leave this office."

  "We’re not goin’ until you admit our kids," Miss Lily said solemnly.

  A short, plump Hindu woman in a sari, with a red caste mark on her forehead, came out of the inner office, "What is the problem, Mister Arrante?"

  "These people refuse to leave the office."

  She turned to the group. "If you don’t leave immediately, we’ll be forced to call the police."

  "Call them," Beth said. "Then we’ll tell the newspapers that you discriminated against our kids."

  The woman protested, "That’s not the reason and you know it."

  "We live in the district and you won’t accept our kids," Kiesha retorted. "What else do you call it?"

  "We’re just following regulations."

  Kiesha shrugged, "You want to have us arrested because we want our kids to go to school? Go ahead. The newspapers will love it." The Hindu woman realized that these troublesome parents wouldn’t evaporate. She conferred with Mister Arrante and Ms. Pastor who had reached the same conclusion.

  They apparently reached a consensus and she turned to the parents, "We don’t want to keep any children out of school. Ms. Pastor will register your children, then escort them to class."

  "What about lunch?" Kiesha asked.

  "Ms. Pastor will arrange it."

  "How will they get home?"
Hector asked.

  "Ms. Pastor will arrange transportation on the school bus. Now I’ll leave you in the capable hands of Ms. Pastor."

  Pablo and Raheen were enrolled in the first grade and Jennifer, Latoya and Jamal were enrolled in kindergarten. This left Andy, James, Tito and Shasta, who were still too young for school.

  "Do you have day care for the younger children?" Kiesha asked.

  Ms. Pastor was pleased to be uncooperative, "No. You’ll have to find someplace on your own. Now if the enrolled children will come with me, I’ll escort them to their class." The relieved parents said goodbye and watched their nervous offspring file out.

  Hector called after Ms. Pastor, "What time will the school bus bring them home?"

  "Between 3:15 and 3:30. Pick-up in the morning will be at 7:30. Now is there anything else?"

  Miss Lily expressed what they were all feeling, "You’ll take good care of our kids, won’t you?"

  "The district takes good care of all its students." The parents couldn’t think of any other questions and they gathered the remaining children and headed for the door.

  Hector waved to Mister Arrante, "Thank that Hindu lady for admitting our kids."

  Once they were on the street, the group was feeling good about compelling the district to register the children. Kiesha was bubbling over. "We’re getting pretty good at this sit-in stuff. With a little more practice, we can go to city hall and tell Mister Guiliani to stop neglecting the poor."

  "Why stop there?" Hector asked. "We can go to Washington, D.C. and ask President Bush to help the homeless."

  Beth laughed, "Bush won’t be the president for a few more days and he’s not interested in helping the homeless."

  Hector was too happy to care. "So what? At least we accomplished something. Did you see that weasel Arrante’s face when I told him I didn’t speak Spanish? He wanted to appeal to me man to man, so the women wouldn’t understand that he was trying to get rid of us. What a greaser."