by Kate Banco
We are all given time to use the rest room and wash our faces and hands. It’s the first time we’ve been given any personal time alone in the rest room. Some are taking longer than others, but we all know there is a line waiting.
As soon as we are seated a flight attendant comes and asks us if we prefer chicken, beef or fish for dinner. We are all surprised to have a choice. We haven’t had anything but bologna and cheese sandwiches and bean and cheese burritos for the whole time we’ve been in the center.
Both Adriana and I choose the chicken. My mouth waters thinking about a hot meal. They even ask us if we want chocolate or vanilla ice cream for dessert. As we wait for everyone to finish the rest room break and be seated we are offered coca-cola and pretzels as a snack. I am so excited to get an extra snack I can’t stop smiling. I have been hungry since we arrived.
I watch as others drain their glasses of coca-cola and gobble up the bag of pretzels. We all wish we could have more but are thankful for what we got. Soon the attendant picks up our garbage and tells us to prepare for takeoff. We buckle our seatbelts and I hear a collective sigh throughout the plane. We are so happy to leave whatever place that was. We have no idea where we are going but are happy to leave.
When the plane levels out, the captain begins to announce to the attendants that they can begin dinner service. I also watch as a huge TV comes on in front of us. Everyone cheers. I feel like I’m in a movie theater. Cartoons come on the screen. First Tom and Jerry, then a cartoon called Scooby-Doo. One of the guards explains in Spanish that we have headphones in the pocket in front of us. We all scramble to find the headphones and plug them in. She also explains if we turn to Channel 5 the cartoons will be in Spanish. We are so excited. It is time to relax and try to forget about everything that happened in the past weeks. Some of the others are in a trance while they watch the cartoons and others start watching and instantly fall asleep. I want to stay awake to watch everything and also to watch for dinner. I can’t wait to get my chicken dinner. I’m very hungry. I hope Memo wakes up to eat dinner.
Adriana is smiling while watching the cartoons. I think it’s the first time she’s relaxed since I met her. Since someone is taking care of Rosa she can be a teenager and enjoy the flight and dinner.
I hear some of the others laughing and talking very loud. I look to see what is happening but can’t see anything except the attendant with a cart. She is handing out dinner trays. Each time she asks a question, then hands the tray to each person with a smile. I hear the kids laugh every time they get a tray. I wonder what they are laughing at.
The cart nears us and I see the attendant pass the tray to the kids across the aisle. Then I watch her as she asks them a question. They laugh and say yes. She then hands them an extra ice cream for dessert. That’s why everyone is so happy, a hot meal with ice cream for dessert and then they ask if you want an extra ice cream. No one has been this nice to us in such a long time.
When the attendant gets to our row she smiles and hands Adriana and I our chicken tray. Then she leans in and says, ”Would you like an extra ice cream?”
Adriana says yes, but I hesitate. “What is it? Do you want an extra ice cream?”
“No, is it possible to get an extra chicken?” I ask.
She smiles and says, “Yes, let me get everyone their first dinner then I’ll bring you another chicken dish. You’re hungry right?”
“Yes, very hungry. Thanks,” I blush.
She smiles and moves to the next row but I see her smile is troubled. She probably hasn’t seen kids this hungry before.
I open my foil wrapped tray and see chicken in a sauce over white rice, corn, bread and butter and ice cream. I don’t know what to eat first I am so hungry. I grab the bread and eat it without the butter while I unwrap the fork and knife. I begin to eat the chicken and rice and I can’t stop. The food tastes so delicious I don’t want to even think that I’ll finish it before she brings me more. As I’m finishing the rice an arm reaches over and hands me a second plate with more chicken, rice and corn. I can’t believe my luck. I open it and continue to shovel the food in my mouth. I take a breath and look over at Adriana. She is also very hungry but doesn’t have the same urgency to eat that I do. I stop for a moment and ask her how she likes the food. She smiles and shakes her head yes but doesn’t answer. I think she doesn’t want to stop eating to respond. I understand totally.
When I open the chocolate ice cream it is soft and creamy. I enjoy the ice cream more than I ever had before. I don’t dare ask for another one but I see the attendant removing the trays from the seats in front of us. Behind her, someone follows with another tray of cookies. When she reaches our row she hands us each three cookies and a carton of milk. This is like heaven. It’s like they understand how hungry we are and they don’t care how much we eat. I wish Memo could be awake and enjoy this. He would love to eat ice cream. I watch as they move Memo to a stretcher. I ask the nurse why they are moving him.
“We need to give him some liquids and nutrition through an IV. He isn’t waking up and he needs to be nourished. He’s okay. He’s resting. You take care of yourself, we’ll take care of Memo,” the kind nurse explains.
They also have moved Rosa to a stretcher. I wonder why those two didn’t do as well as the others. Did something happen at the detention center? That worries me. They were separated from us for quite a few days. Anything could have happened.
The trays are removed and we all relax and watch the cartoons. It’s quite soothing to just sit back and not think or worry. My eyes close and I drift off to sleep. I try to stay awake but I am too exhausted to keep my eyes open. There is an eerie quiet to our capsule in the sky. I can hear the engines and the air outside the plane, but everyone has quieted down. Since everyone is using headphones I can’t hear the cartoons either. It is so calming and my eyes close. The next thing I hear is the attendant’s cart coming down the aisle. I see the attendants handing a white washcloth to everyone. Some kids take it and don’t know what to do. She explains it is to wash your face and hands to prepare for our late night snack. We are surprised they are feeding us again, but no one complains. I’ll accept any food they give me except a baloney and cheese sandwich.
I wash my hands and wipe the cloth across my face and neck. It refreshes me and I’m excited to see what they bring us for snacks. I watch as the others hand the used washcloth back to the attendant. I feel like this is first class service. I have no idea what first class service is like but I am being treated like a first class human and it relaxes me. I don’t worry as much. I have no idea where we are going but it doesn’t matter anymore. I feel safe for the first time in weeks. Our snack appears to be more of a breakfast than snack. We are given fruit, a breakfast cereal with milk, a cinnamon roll and choice of coffee, tea or chocolate milk. I want the milk, but would also like a coffee. I wonder if I’ll have the chance to get a coffee later. That would be perfect.
I open up the cereal container to find corn flakes with sugar. On the package, it says Frosted Flakes. I decide to cut up the banana and eat it with my cereal. The combination of the cold milk, banana, sugar and cereal is delicious. I hope I get a chance to eat this again. When the attendant comes through to collect our trays she also has a coffee pot.
“Could I get a cafe con leche por favor?”
“Of course, how many sugars?” She asks.
“Tres por favor,” I reply.
It doesn’t appear that three sugars is too much. She doesn’t blink an eye.
I sip the hot, sweet liquid and as it goes down my throat my thoughts are happy thoughts. The past few weeks of horrific memories start to fade. Then I remember how weak and sad Memo looks. The happy moment doesn’t last long; I still have so much to worry about. It’s funny how everything seems better when you aren’t hungry or worried about where you’ll find your next meal. A full stomach is needed in the first step to feeling content. I’d never been
hungry before I crossed the border. In our house, we always had enough food to keep us satisfied. It’s only when we left our home that the scarcity of food became an issue. The hunger was much worse once we were in the detention facility.
I finish my coffee and try to stand up to use the rest room. The attendant takes my tray away and I walk down the aisle. On the way, I stop to see Memo and his nurse. She is eating her snack. Memo still hasn’t woken up. It is worrisome; what will happen when he wakes up? His nurse smiles and says he is doing well, he is just sleeping. She tells me not to worry.
“It’s hard not to worry. I don’t know what happened to him while he was in the detention center. Will he be able to tell us?” I ask.
“It depends if he wants to remember. He may want to forget everything that has happened to him in the past few weeks,” she answers.
“I hope he is okay,” I say.
“He will have the best doctors when we arrive. Don’t worry. He will get the best care.”
Before I return to my seat I check on Rosa too. She continues to sleep. Her nurse tells me not to worry.”
The remainder of the flight the lights are dimmed and we are given blankets and pillows. The guards tell us we have another five hours of flight to Bangor, Maine. She tells us we should sleep and when we land in Bangor, she will wake us. Almost everyone settles down with the blanket and pillow. This is more comfort we’ve had in all of our days in the detention center with our aluminum foil blanket.
CHAPTER 20
Bangor, Maine
The new guards are so nice to us. The woman in charge is very helpful and smiles at me when she sees me watching her. I find out her name is Joy. I didn’t know what that meant until the other guard, Margarita, told me. It means alegria in Spanish. There isn’t a better name for a person who rescues children from detention centers. It is a joy we were rescued even though we don’t know where we are going. I hope they tell us soon.
Our plane lands in Bangor, Maine after a never-ending flight. We sleep most of the way. They feed us a delicious lunch of pasta and no-one is hungry or thirsty. Everyone gets ice cream. But we are all exhausted. Memo and Rosa continue to sleep and I worry about them.
The plane stays on the runway for a couple of hours. Some of the children are restless and start to run up and down the aisles of the plane. The guards try to be patient, but we have been cooped up in this plane for hours. We would like some sunshine and fresh air.
Immigration officials come aboard. What if they send us back to the Mexican border? It would be terrible to start our journey again. The guards speak with officials. One goes to the microphone and asks that everyone be seated. I worry they will detain some or all of us.
I see the officials look our way as they look over the paperwork. I hear one of them start to count how many are on board the plane. Fifty children. He hands the papers back to Joy. She smiles and tells the other guards to get everyone seated.
The Spanish-speaking guard, Margarita, gets on the microphone and says we will take off in a few minutes.
“Attention everyone, I know it’s been a long flight and you are restless. We have a few more hours to go. We are going to show a movie after take off. We hope you can sit back and relax.We have the stamp on our transit visas we need. We will land on Bear Island, Nova Scotia. We are headed to Canada.”
Canada? Why are we going to Canada? Some of the others get anxious and ask about their parents.
“How will my Papá find me in Canada? We were going to California to live, not Canada. What if he can’t find me?” A young girl cries.
A young boy says, “I’m afraid of Canada, what is Canada?”
Margarita tries to calm everyone down by saying, “We will do everything possible to find your parents and reunite you. In the meantime this is a safe place until we find them.”
I know it will be difficult to find Papá and Abuelita, but I hope until then Memo and I can stay together. Memo will ask as soon as he wakes up if we are in California and if Mamá has returned from her trip. How am I going to tell him we are in Canada?
The fasten your seatbelt sign comes on and I see the guards sit down for take off. The engines start and once again we are off on a flight to a place we’ve never heard of. A simple trip to California brought us all the way to Maine. Now we will leave the United States and enter into Canada. I knew we should have returned to Lazaro Cardenas. Here we are thousands of miles away from home without parents and at the mercy of our rescuers and none of us have ever heard of Bear Island. But Bear Island is the only home we’ve got. Papá, what have you done?
Spanish English Glossary
Las aparencias engañan.-Appearances are deceiving
Hermanita-little sister
Hermanito-little brother
Hija, qué alegría verte. ¿Cómo estás?-Daughter, what happiness to see you. How are you?
¿Tienes hambre? ¿Quieres comer algo?-Are you hungry. Do you want something to eat?
No, gracias-no thanks.
No es problema, hija-It’s not a problem, daughter
Sí, hija. Pero las madres nunca dejan de preocuparse
por los hijos-Yes daughter, but mothers never stop worrying about their children.
¿Está en la cocina?- Is he in the kitchen?
de acuerdo-Okay
Jarritos-Mexican brand of soda
tamarindo-Tamarind
Champurrado-Mexican hot chocolate drink
Pan dulce-Mexican hot chocolate drink
arroz con pollo-rice with chicken
Hola-Hello or Hi
Estás en tu casa- You are in your home. A Mexican greeting to visitors at their houses.
Abuelita-Grandmother
Mira Abuelita, Ud. tiene la cara como un vaquero.-
Look Grandma, you have the face of a cowboy.
Somos cowboys también.-We are cowboys too.
¡Buitres!” Vultures
Querida Mamá-Dear Mother
Tu hijo-your son
Estamos aquí-We are here
Taquería-taco shop
Fantasma-ghost
¡Hombre, cuánto tiempo!-Man, how long has it been.
Mi mamá está de viaje-Mother is on a trip.
“¡Ay, no!-Oh No!
¿Señora, cómo está Ud? Y Madam Mrs. How are you? And children?
Sí, a mí me gustan los tacos como los de mi mamá-Yes, I like tacos like my mom makes.
¿Qué quieres hijo? What would you like son?
Carnitas, a mi me gustan carnitas. Carnitas, a Mexican meat dish. I like carnitas.
Muy bien, y Ud. Señora? ¿Que le pongo?-
Very good, and Madam? What shall I bring you?
“Una sopita y unas tortillas de maíz, por favor. No tengo mucha hambre.”
“Muy bien, ahorita vuelvo.-Very good, I’ll be right back.
agua de Jamaica-Hibiscus Flower water.
Muchas gracias Paco y Teresa.-Thank you very much Paco and Teresa.
Ni hablar.-No way.
Sí hijo, sí-Yes, son, yes.
Buenas noches-Good night
la primaria-Primary or Elementary school
Fiesta-party or celebration
Sí, mira Papá.-Yes, look Papa.
secundaria-Secondary school or high school
¡Tengo hambre!-I’m hungry
¿Tortitas con nata?-Pancakes with whipped cream?
Unas tortillas calientes, por favor. las tortillas de Mamá-
Some hot tortillas, please my mother’s tortillas.
Un huevo revuelto con las tortillas primero-A scrambled egg with the tortillas first
huevos, frijoles, queso y arroz por favor. Con tortillas.-
eggs, beans, cheese and rice please. With tortillas.
“Toma hijo-Here son.
&n
bsp; Abuelo-Grandfather
Todavía no, hijo-Not yet, son.
Compadre, vaya con Díos-Intimate friend, go with God.
Transpeninsular-Highway that crosses the peninsula of Baja.
Gasolinera-gas station
Gasolina-gasoline
Recinto Portuario-Port Area
Talavera-Mexican style of ceramics
langosta -lobster
Centro-downtown
cervezas-beers
Claro-of course
Burros-donkeys
¿Qué te pasa, hijo?-What is wrong, son?
¿Quién te dio mi número?-Who gave you my number?
“Oh, hijo. No puedo más-Oh son, I can’t handle anymore.
el centro de Tijuana-Downtown Tijuana
Gracias a Dios-Thank God
Quiero una coca cola, tengo mucha sed-I want a coke, I’m so thirsty.
Palitos-popsicles
Sí, hijo. ¡Vamonos!-Yes son, let’s go.
Papá, a dónde vamos en California?-Papa, where are we going in California?
Bueno, quién es?-Hello, who is it? (phone conversation)
Cinco-five
Cinco mil pesos-five thousand pesos
Viejo-old man
El jefe-the boss
yanquis?-Yankees
Muchachas-girls
Calmense y sientese por favor-Calm down and sit down
Vamos a dar una vuelta más-We are going to do circle around
Aterrizamos en seguida-We will land soon
