Introduction: “I will put my law within them, and I will
write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33)
Christine
Newman Ortiz is the executive Director and founder of Voces de la Frontera, an
immigrant workers center. Voces is well known for its participation in the
struggle for worker rights. On May 1st
every year Voces organizes a march in which thousands participate. Christine animates the action for justice as
nature - the natural law dictates.
She is the
daughter of a Mayan mother and a father who was born in Germany and earned a
PhD in science. He taught at the
University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
Christine’s
Faith or Trust in nature is expressed in a poem she wrote after her father’s
death.
 |
| Es un guerrero, mi corozon (My heart, a warrior) |
For Opa
You won’t believe me.
Or maybe you will?
The day after my father’s soul
Departed his body
While he slept in our home
He came back the next day.
In the form of a sparrow
Hovering
On the other side of the window
On the second floor of our home
Like a hummingbird
Holding itself in flight.
Fixing his gaze solidly to mine
For five long deep breaths
It was as if I was seeing through a crack in the universe
something wondrous, vibrant mysterious.
My father, a proud Berliner,
A hard working responsible German immigrant
Who allowed himself moments of tenderness, expression,
and sentimentality
Towards the end
Was reaching out
Across a great chasm
In the form of his beloved sparrow, Pio-Pio
And his childhood nickname
Clear as daylight
Loud as thunder
To say “Look I am still with you. Do not grieve. I am here.”
Epilogue:
The two sources of Revelation are Nature and the Bible.
Thomas Aquinas
Heart and Fist’ Graphic
Diccionario del Corozon
Grabados de Naul Ojeda
Taller Leñateros, San Cristobal de las Casas, Mexico 2002
Thank you Bill for posting this. What a beautiful tribute by Christine to her father. It was a celebration of diversity.
ReplyDelete