MISSIONER NEWSLETTER – Fall 2024
Rick Dixon, U.S.-Mexico Border
“My hope for David is that he continues to learn to face his fears through words, stories, and communing with others, perhaps even sharing his own story some day,” says missioner Rick Dixon.
MEXICALI, MEXICO—David is 10 years old and can’t count, read, or write. I’m unsure of his background, but as with many children at the Oasis Center—whose families are internally displaced from within Mexico due to climate change, poverty, and/or violence—trauma and learning disabilities are endemic. A week after David arrived at the center, Sr. Margarita asked me to help him learn the alphabet.
We start off with building blocks, laying down A through J and pronouncing the letters together several times. David then tries on his own, but he freezes when he gets to J. A series of muted, hesitant attempts with the letter fail, as if some hieroglyphic serpent raised its ugly head and swallowed him alive. Focus and concentration gone, David vanishes into an aggressive self-stupor. Estupido. Estupido. ¡Soy estupido!
“No, you’re not stupid,” I say.
He walks out of the classroom to a garden area where a huge bougainvillea flowers red petals. He stoops down and draws J in the dirt and adds a smiley face on top of it. He then cups a hand to each side of the letter and scoops it up, stands, and tosses J into blue eternity. Dust and dirt shower down on us.
We run in circles, revving our legs with the growl of a jaguar. Sweat spilling down his olive-tented face, David finally says, “J.” We give each other high-fives, hearts full of joy. Thirsty, David heads to a water cooler just outside the entrance of the boy’s dorm where he meets a dragonfly.
Big dark iridescent eyes into big chestnut eyes, their stares lock. Wings and hearts beat rapidly; their spirits seem to broaden and embrace in a shared mystery. There’s nothing illiterate about David now. He’s engaging with a great intelligence.
The dragonfly darts over the bougainvillea and David chases after it. The boy buzzes around red petals and searches into branches. Not there, he races for a large grass area and around a viny crespon plant, which the sisters often use to decorate the altar in the chapel. No dragonfly, he continues to a small mango tree. Not there, he moves onto a laurel bush blooming blue and white flowers. No go, he buzzes around a guayabo, a fig, and orange trees. Nothing. He darts into a giant guamuchil and lands on a tire swing hanging from its branches. He takes several deep breaths and looks more peaceful than he has in days.
He practices this tour de force whenever he gets a chance, and with the help of the natural world, we’ve made it through the alphabet and are slowly moving into phonics. With the blending of letters and the formation of words, there is a wonder in his eyes. My hope for David is that he continues to learn to face his fears through words, stories, and communing with others, perhaps even sharing his own story some day.
David reminds me how important nature is in helping to heal trauma. Likewise, active listening with a good dose of total physical response are building blocks for preventing violence. He also instills a question in me: how can my presence here better bear witness to the suffering of the children?
Sr. Mary Lou Kownachik in her poem, Prayer for the Decade of Nonviolence, offers a path:
May I bow to the sacred in all creation. May my hands never harm a living being. May my steps stay on the journey of justice. May my love for friends, enemies, and outcasts be without measure. May my imagination overcome death and despair with new possibilities. And may my soul always rejoice in the present moment.
Please consider supporting my mission work at the U.S.-Mexico border with a donation through the link below.
I invite you to walk with me as a “COMPANION IN MISSION.” Companions in Mission are friends and generous donors who give financial gifts on a regular (usually monthly) basis. For more information, visit Become a Companion in Mission. Thank you so much for your generosity!
Rick Dixon is a Maryknoll lay missioner working in several migrant ministries at the U.S.-Mexico border in Mexicali, Mexico.
