Student Spectrums

In a small town in Texas lived a man named Frank Cajun, a man in his 40s. He lived by himself. His kids had moved out, leaving him alone, and his wife had passed away. Frank Cajun was the grumpiest of grumpy. On this particular day, Frank woke up at 9 in the morning and went straight to his coffee station. He grabbed his cup of joe and listened to his radio.

The Texan radio host exclaimed, “1 in every 4 jobs is taken up by immigrants.”

Joe shouted as he drank his coffee, “These immigrants are taking up every job. Why don’t these people just go back to their own country?”

The radio host continued to talk. “There has been an increase in immigrants day by day.”

Frank slammed down the cup of his coffee and walked to the shower, shouting, “Way to start off the day.”

After Frank showered, he went to the kitchen to get his breakfast. He looked at his fridge and sighed. The fridge was empty and had a half-empty pack of bacon. That’s what he cooked, and he sat down to drink his half-cold cup of coffee. After seeing the state of his fridge, Frank decided to go to the store to stock up on ingredients that were finished. Frank hopped in his pickup truck and went on his way to the store.

On the way to the store, as Frank stopped at the first intersection, in the corner of his eye he saw a couple of construction workers. While taking a closer look, they seemed to be Hispanic workers, which angered Frank. Frank sneered at the workers and drove when the light turned green. At the store, Frank gathered his house supplies and went to the checkout where he saw a Mexican employee working the register, making Frank turn around and go to self-checkout. As Frank grabbed his bagged items and stormed off in a stomping manner, he sighed in his truck.

Soon after Frank reached home, he received a call from his father’s lawyer.

The lawyer told Frank, “Your late father had some property and you need to sign the deed over to your own name.”

Frank replied, “Do I have to? And also where is this property?”

The lawyer said, “Yes you have to, and this property is in Mexico.”

Frank shouted, “MEXICOO?” and sighed.

Eventually Frank agreed and said he would head over. In the afternoon, Frank canceled his evening plans of being a couch potato and planned to go to Mexico. The next day, Frank woke up with a frown. His day was already being ruined by his trip to Mexico. He arrived at the border, where in one corner he saw Mexicans getting taken by the border patrol, people trying to go under the border gate, and in another corner he saw a long line of Mexicans in the immigration line. He seemed a little disturbed by seeing people getting dragged away. He made it to immigration for U.S. citizens, where he told the agent that he would be staying for only one day. Then he passed through.

He expected dirty streets, gangsters, and trouble, but he found colorful streets filled with laughter and music in the background. The streets were filled with the aroma of food, which led him to his first food stall. He walked up to the street food stall and said,

“Two of whatever ur making,” signaling with his finger.

He got his two tacos and sat down to eat. He was a little skeptical and didn’t want to eat, but his rumbling stomach told him otherwise. He took his first bite of Mexican food. As he chewed his first bite, his eyes widened. He surprisingly enjoyed his food. He got up and went back to the stall and signaled for two more. After he finished his first experience with Mexican food, he found a taxi and gave the driver his address.

Frank tried explaining, “Here, I need go here,” shoving a location on his phone into his face.

The taxi driver told Frank, “I speak English.”

Frank entered the car and immediately asked for the air conditioning. The taxi driver kindly told Frank about Mexico, about the locals, the food, the places to visit, and his job. He talked about his family and how this job barely helped him get by.

Frank interrupted, saying, “Why don’t you go to America like all the others?”

The taxi driver replied, “It isn’t as easy as it seems. If you wanna live there without looking over your shoulder, you have to be there legally. And I already applied.”

Frank stayed quiet and continued to listen. Soon they entered the city, and at an intersection, as Frank looked out the car window, he saw the reality of people, how in the burning heat, people stood trying to make money. After a bit more driving, they pulled up near a plot of land. As Frank left, he gave the driver the cash plus extra.

The driver returned the change, saying, “It’s too much, thank you.”

Frank took the cash and left the ride with a new perspective. He walked to the office where he had to sign the deed of the land, but it ended up being closed. He made his way to a restaurant, where he ordered a bowl of soup by pointing to the image on the menu above. As he reached into his back pocket, he struggled to find his wallet. Embarrassingly, he started to walk out, but he was called back by the woman wearing a headnet.

The young-looking man next to him said, “You can pay later,” in broken English.

Frank sat down at a table, and soon after, the young man came out with his soup.

The young man asked, “Could I join?”

Frank awkwardly said, “Sure.”

The young man asked, “From Texas or California?”

Frank replied, “Texas.”

The young man said, “My brother in Texas works as farmer.”

Frank questioned, “Why?”

“To work,” the young man replied, “to assist us back home.”

Frank looked down and played with his food.

“Let me know if you need more,” the young man said before he got up and left.

“Thanks,” Frank replied in a broken voice.

Frank pulled out his phone from the pocket in his coat to find a nearby hotel, where he also found his wallet. Frank took out a 50 dollar bill, placed it on the table, and left. He walked to the nearby hotel. He reached the place by following the map and looked up to see a house. He questioned whether this was the hotel or a family’s house. Not having much of a choice, he rang the bell. He waited, wondering if tonight would be his last night. The door was opened by a middle-aged man with a button-up shirt and a thick mustache.

Frank asked, “Hotel, motel?”

The middle-aged man said, “Yes my friend.”

The man signaled Frank to come in, and he followed reluctantly. He looked around as he followed the man.

The man said, “I am Lalo.”

“Oh I am Frank,” Frank replied.

Lalo told Frank, “This is my house. I rent people 1 room.”

Frank said, “Oh I see.”

They made their way to the living room where Frank met Lalo’s wife and his daughter. Frank greeted them and got to know them.

Frank asked, “Why do you rent a room?”

“It’s for the money,” Lalo replied.

Frank just gave an awkward nod and looked away.

“Could I see the room?” Frank asked to ease the tension.

Lalo replied, “Yes, come this way.”

The room was small, but tidy and clean. It had a floor mattress and a small side table.

Frank asked, “I’ll be out by the morning.”

“Stay as long as needed,” Lalo said.

The next morning, as Lalo slept, Frank put cash on the table and tried to leave quietly but got invited to breakfast. He ate breakfast with them and headed out.

He reached the lawyer’s office and signed the deed to the land. He took a taxi to the border. As he glanced out the window, he left Mexico with something more important than the deed to his father’s land. He left Mexico with a different perspective. He reached back into Texas and saw the employee at the grocery store, construction workers, and farmers with respect. He respected how they left their own country to come to a place foreign to them, just to provide for their families. He greeted, thanked, and appreciated the people he had long ignored. He became ashamed of his past self for sneering at workers and employees, people who already had it hard enough living in a foreign country.