AUSTIN ADVOCATE |
 |
MIA
By Val Romness
Well I enjoyed my denial, how bout you? It couldn’t be… Creature Steve?... MIA?... Missing from our lives? All winter it was said on the street that he was dead. This past May, a little birdie told me to call and find out. I finally confirmed the truth when I called the VA in Waco. He had died over 6 months before I called. He was no longer M.I.A.
I’ve been unable to find out his final resting place, because I’m not family. Family? I was his sister on the street. He was the first street person I got to know and he introduced me to the homeless family. I became the advocate I am because of him.
He was 53 yrs old. Sept 28, 1951-Oct 18, 2004. We’ll here’s the dash between the dates. Born and raised in Tennessee, Steve Griffin, was a helicopter mechanic in Viet Nam. His DD214 says: (67N20 UH-1 Hel Rpmn). Honorably discharged in March 1972. In 1985 he came to Austin Texas, preaching his spiritual views to the street. “Jesus is Lord!” “There’ll be a camera on every corner watchin’ us…” Save ‘ya Jesus!” “There’s a bug in my ear, they’re listenin’ to us right now!” “Bless ‘ya Lord!” “Looky here… I ain’t no fool”. PTSD post traumatic stress disorder, shell shock, what ever it’s called today is not just for veterans of War. We all can get stuck on past stressful hurts. Steve’s were daymares. He saw the gray faces of his fallen buddies - while he was awake. He wore a black armband in their memory. He felt guilty for being alive, which can be common of stressful situations.
I met him in November 1987. Bought local pecans from him at the Wall on Barton Springs Rd. “Mornin’ Sista!” he called after me, as I rode my bike to work everyday. A couple years later I lost track of him when my job changed. Low and behold, I ran into him again in Jan 1990. I finally accepted his offer for coffee.
He was such a gentleman. Steve cared about people. He had a way of showing you his caring side that was his own unique way. One time as we were helping each other in our process of self-sustainability, he sensed I needed some humor. I looked over at him and the dead serious man, quietly and calmly, had disguise glasses on. ehhh-ha! The thought of that weird nose & glasses still makes me laugh out loud. I learned about “Red Tape” and P.T.S.D.
Anyone who knew Steve received a great gift. He looked out for the little old Indian lady, Margie LaPrairie, who passed away April 17th, 2004, and made it to 73 years. My denial served me well.
We had a remembrance service at the Memorial Day Picnic May 30 . There were approximately 35 people that enjoyed the camaraderie and BBQ. There were a handful of us there that knew Steve and we remembered him as a Viet Nam Veteran, a friend and as a brother on the street. We made amends and told stories about him. The friends who didn’t attend remembered him in their own way and place.
Here are some writings I collected:
Steve got a helicopter salute at the picnic. The police got a false call of trouble and came in on us with full force. Even the helicopter flew around 3 times. I guess you could look at it as a salute of farewell. So how else does a street Nam Vet get a military salute. Thank goodness no one got tasered.
He did not say goodbye, not out loud anyway. He stopped by to see the guys a couple of times. They said he was very thin and didn’t look very good. I believe he called me twice from an E.R. visit at Brackenridge Hospital last September. My caller I.D. said Brack Hospital, but the caller was silent...The lil’ birdie told me it was him. I felt his presence. It may have been a silent hug; it may have been his call for help; or his way of letting me know. I didn’t hang up. I feel we prayed together, one last time. What a friend!
Whoaa!
Can I have a hug? (Steve gave the best gentle hugs)
Thanks for being a friend Creature Steve! I hope you’re on the other side of your pain.
R.I.P. You will remain M.I.A. in my heart.
In Memory of
Viet Nam, Agent Orange and P.T.S.D.
Dear Medicine Woman,
"Without a vision, the people perish." And so the seer, at your request, has now completed the vision quest.
Across the great cultural divide, the shaman bids shalom and Shabbat to the shepherdess.
They came preaching and teaching the Lord of Shabbat, but they never kept Shabbat. Because they never kept Shabbat, the Name of their Lord is spoken against among our people. They claim to have "settled" the land. They lie. They have unsettled! the land with their profanations. The land can no longer stomach them and will soon vomit them out.
Their sails sailed like clouds over the water. And we received them as gods come down on clouds. They soon showed themselves to be devils. They crucified their Son of God because He was UNarmed and dangerous. But, though He was unarmed, our Son of Man was never unmanned.
Hear, then, this ode in code mode:
The mole has burrowed deep in the heart.... of enemy country. The fox is in his mole hole. He is as wise as a ssssssssserpent and will never be outfoxed. The raccoon is in the cocoon. Jonah and Mona in Cocona were used as dragon bait and now the ark is in the shark. He swallowed them hook, line and sinker. They are giving him heartburn. All his fire keeps backfiring. They are giving him indigestion. He keeps belching and belching but just can't belch them up out of his belly.
We have created an impenetrable smokescreen so that the opposition is unable to detect our smoke signals rising like incense on high. The Most High is incensed at their doings.
We were always for peace; but every time our peace pipe spoke, the fork-tongued enemy spoke signals for war. The peace pipe was in his mouth, but the war drum was in his heart. Therefore, we have forgotten our rain dance and our sun dance. We have completed our war dance, donned our war paint, mounted our war pony and have taken the warpath in full war regalia. In truth and in righteousness, WE WILL WAGE WAR! We have completed our war dance and hurled from our mouth the war lance to impale the paleface unless he repents.
The sages had a night vision: a glittering, shimmering, iridescent dragon was writhing in agony in the heavens above. He was dis-i-n-t-e-gra-t-in-g like a cloud over our heads. The sages know that the vision preSAGES the ultimate destruction of our enemy, the Destroyer. Our long-awaited One will come and "destroy those who are destroying the earth" with her foxes and moles and "All things bright and beautiful; all creatures great and small; all things wise and wonderful." Civilization ravages the land. The savage does not ravage the land. They crucified the Creator so it follows that they would crucify His creation. They have made all the indigenous peoples indigent. Where are our buffalo? On a nickel! Our eagle, too, is bought and sold like chattel. They have turned Paradise into merchandise. Did they really prove the earth round? No! they have proven the earth flat – for they have flattened our creatures onto their coins. “Liberty” is on their money while we are on their reservations. “In God We Trust” is on their money. What god do they trust in – the money god – the almighty dollar? He will prove impotent at last. Oh, that the God they profess to worship really were God! Then He would come down from heaven and set the record straight.
"This is my Father's world; O may I ne'er forget that though the wrong seems oft' so strong, God is the Ruler yet.
"This is my Father's world; I rest me in the thought, of rocks and trees, of skies and seas, His hand the wonders wrought.
"This is my Father's world; the birds their carols raise, the morning bright, the lily white, declare their Maker's praise.
"This is my Father's world; and to my lis'ning ears, all nature sings and 'round me rings the music of the spheres.
"This is my Father's world; He shines in all that's fair; in the rustling grass, I hear Him pass; He speaks to me everywhere."
My Father gets the last laugh says the giraffe.
Our papoose got loose and was found with the goose. His first words were: "Release my geese."
I'm looking forward to our next pow-wow. Our last one was pow wowerful!
-- Painted Pony
Connecting With People
By Richard Troxell
House the Homeless believes that in order to be successful as advocates, we must communicate with and involve the people most affected by the problems for which we offer solutions.
House the Homeless is made up of all homeless and formerly homeless people. We connect with people by locating our office in the local homeless resource center...their home in Austin, Texas. About twice a month, as President of House the Homeless, I go to other places where people experiencing homelessness frequent. For example, I’ll go to the “Angel House” where folks are gathering to eat, and I’ll address the crowd. In a soapbox style, I address the group and start by introducing myself. The crowd usually quiets when someone recognizes me and calls for attention. If I weren’t known, I’d first approach the doorman or one of the food providers and ask them to still the crowd so I can speak. The introduction gives me credibility...at least until I begin to speak...then it’s up to me. I explain who I am and that I’ve been working for several years in hope of making things better for folks living on the street. While our goal is to end homelessness, I don’t assert this concept at this time as folks on the street don’t believe that homelessness will ever end.
Before I speak about the Housing Trust Fund, the Bring America Home Act, or the Universal Living Wage Campaign, I talk about the tickets that they are receiving for sleeping outside or the lack of port-o-potties or about the police moving them from one area of town to another, etc. I then always try to give them something they can use in their daily lives. I may give them a copy of the “No Camping” Ordinance so they know more about it than the police who issue them tickets for supposedly violating it. Or, I may give them a House the Homeless “Plastic Pocket guide” a laminated, eight paneled resource guide that easily folds down and fits into their pocket.
Having established credibility and rapport, I finally share with them some other information that is also to their benefit. I tell them that they have a friend in us and that we are out there fighting with their interests in mind every single day whether they see us or not. I invite them to our monthly meeting to share their concerns so we can work together to improve things. I explain that we embrace the concepts of dignity and fairness for all folks Experiencing homelessness.
Finally, I thank them for their time and tell them I’ll see them “next time” or at the monthly meeting. Hopefully we’ve made a meaningful connection, (at least for this week).
Hey my Fellow Advocates and Homeless men and women!
What's up? Well, you know I got my G.E.D. and guess what? We had a graduation ceremony and I was one of the top 20 students! The ceremony was held at Georgetown High School and I wore a cap and gown. About 200 regular people that buy the Austin Advocate from me were there. I felt so proud and so good that I am really starting to accomplish a lot of my hopes and dreams.
I have also received my eight year medallion (chip) for eight years sobriety in AA. I don't dislike anyone that drinks, but I choose to stay sober for me. I have also worked the 12 steps of recovery, but I work them just like I work the Austin Advocates on a daily basis in my life.
I am now trying to enter the Texas Rehabilitation Commission where they will train you for a good job or vocation.
But for now, and really always in my heart, I'll be an Austin Advocate and fight for the homeless because that’s where it started for me.
Till next time. God bless you all.
--Alfred Mendiola
I can see clearly now the rain is gone. I can see all obstacles in my way. It's going to be a bright, bright, some sunny day. Yes, it will be a bright, bright, some sunny day!!!
My fellow homeless men and women, I know there are a lot of obstacles in our way, but we have to keep dwelling on the good, not the bad. There's always hope until it’s over. look at all the people that aren’t homeless, and are killing people (some have even killed the homeless) killed gay people, women, racial, hate crimes, embezzlement in corporate business (including some that should be helping us)> What about all that?
But you see that’s where the Austin Advocate comes in, to fight for our rights! Like I said who will be the Martin Luther King for the homeless? Not another homeless person has to die the way a lot of us have had to die.
I make a proposal that we have a march for the homeless in Austin, called "March For Hope" for every homeless person in America. To work with, mentor, more rehabilitation center, more halfway houses, more job training. We cannot have universal peace till we have local peace. Peace in every community. This problem I'm talking about needs every local, every community, to get involved with the homeless and start working with the ones that want help. What if it were you? Wouldn't you want help also?
-- Patricia Mendiola
Puns
A crow in a telephone booth had no money so he had to make a collect caw. 4.8 stars
I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me. 4.2 stars
An illiterate fisherman was lost at c.
A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.
The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
He avoided funerals because he was not a mourning person.
When the TV repairman got married the reception was excellent.
A small boy swallowed some coins and was taken to a hospital. When his grandmother telephoned to ask how he was a nurse said 'No change yet'.
The short fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.
When the waiter spilled a drink on his shirt, he said, "this one is on me."
There's no short cut to becoming a hair stylist.
A scientist doing a large experiment with liquid chemicals was trying to solve a problem when he fell in and became part of the solution.
An office with many people and few electrical outlets could be in for a power struggle.
There was a guy who was fired from the orange juice factory for lack of concentration.
The poet had written better poems, but he'd also written verse.
She was the apple of his eye and he liked to sit down be cider.
He bent over to pick up a sieve and strained himself.
Two nuclear technicians got married. She was radiant and he was glowing.
He'd never gone hunting but decided to give it a shot.
When the human cannonball retired they couldn't find a replacement of the right caliber.
If you leave alphabet soup on the stove and go out, it could spell disaster.
Home
By Trisha Yeager
I long for a place that I will call home.
A place where I'll never again be alone.
Though I can't envision this special place
I'll know when I see it-for it has its own face.
A face I sense now as the sun sinks low
And the world is shadowed, ecept for a glow
High on the hill where the boulders nest,
When work has ceased and the world is at rest.
I see colors up there that aren't here below
Greens, yellows, and rusts-like a giant halo
Encircling a place that I'll go to one day
A home in the sky where forever I'll stay
Safe and secure in the arms of the Lord,
Happy, I'll play and never be bored.
I yearn for this place that I will call home
The place where I'll never again be alone.
The Spirit of the Wind
By Jerry Hurta
Within magical winds
My spirit touched by those distant drums
Of rattles and chants of our forgotten spirits
Souls reaching out with a hazy moon
As a lone wolf cries out into empty air
For still it was never ever empty
As my pen filled with that magic
To which has only awakened me
As that fire within igniting the coals
A campfire with a radiant glow
Elders dancing within that flickering light
Tales of love, of hunts, of Earth and Heaven
Trials awaiting me, my spirit-
For time carries on within my soul
Like the great hunt continuing on a celestial plane
Lost visions of love, now carried over time
As so much time becomes our friend
Never more our enemy, our nightmare-
As only fear and shame exposes weakness
Like through denial and addiction
Those carried guilts of past lives
To which bind us into that walk
A walk which keeps us in bondage
A Spiritual bondage for an eternity
As only through those elders, spiritual elders-
Attempting to reach and release us
To awaken us to this time to our true spiritual being
Or watch us fade within the fires of time
If You Were Me
If you were me,
you would know how I feel.
If you were me,
you would understand.
If you were me,
you could see the gifts inside of me.
If you were me.
If you were me,
you would know the struggles of this day.
If you were me,
you would know the pain that never goes away.
If you were me,
you could see see my wish to be free.
If you were me.
Together we are many
Tumen Soliz
Little lost airplane
sends us running through the streets
Mortal juices flow.
Run aimless with fear
This could be the real thing,
We should be ashamed.
Iraqi's are pissed,
As anyone with weapons
Defends the homeland.
Dinosaurs came, went,
We are alive but going
Must we live in fear?
In the ancient world,
When carnivores roamed the land,
Every dream was real.
I am what I am
I will be who I will be
And dreams came to life.
Today's ill culture
Sees war as a solution.
War same then as now.
Post traumatic stress
Apostles mourn Jesus' death
Vision serves to guide.
All over the world,
Maybe in your own front yard,
Children kill for fun.
Its the game you teach
"He who dies with the most toys wins"
Sending young to war.
One cannot throw rocks
Together we are many
We can move the Earth.
|
|
MIA Dear Medicine Woman Conecting With People Outside Hey My Fellow Advocates Poetry Home The Spirit of the Wind If You Were Me Together We Are Many |
