Troy's House

Ellen Schlabach

April 20, 2013

Borders, Bridges, and Boundaries: Final Paper

There is a house on Third Street that has become very dear to me.  At this time last year, I would have passed it by without second thought.  Set back, like the blue door of Keesha’s House, its paint is peeling, its steps are worn, and there is really nothing particularly exceptional about it as a house.  The connections that happen inside, however, are extraordinary.  The house is owned by Troy, a 26 year old white mechanic, who runs his own shop.  He rents out rooms to Brett and Jerome, both about the same age, white, and factory workers.  Yet finding a day when they are the only people in the house is unbelievably rare.  The house is home base to what has been self dubbed “the Phamily”: a diverse group of young adults that had bonded together through common interest and mutual friendships.  This group includes three undocumented immigrants, factory workers, a special needs teacher, several college students, with degrees ranging from geology to teaching to biochemistry, a bartender, and more, all ranging from the age of 19 to the age of 28.  This place is the ultimate safe house: filled with comfort, love, and friendship.

The members of this phamily have had more than their fair share of problems.  One person has a history of drug abuse.  He was, for a short time, using cocaine, and it was taking serious tolls on his life.  So Troy stepped in, and let him stay at the house for a reduced rent until he got his life together and could pay more.  He worked with him to help him stop his drug use and helped him find a job.  He has been clean ever since.  Seeing as most of the group is over 21, nights at the Constant Spring occur.  On these nights, Troy requires every person going parks at his house, walks to and from the bar, and spends the night at his house.  When a friend of the group died, everyone gathered at Troy’s house and stayed there for several days, creating a web of support and love.  And the phamily is ever expanding.  When I started dating one of the friend group, I was welcomed with open arms and acceptance.  After just a year of knowing everyone, I already consider them my good friends.  

Troy’s house presents a great example of how a very diverse group of individuals has bridged their differences to come together to form a very cohesive friend circle.  I believe this semester spent focusing on stratification of society has helped me become aware of these differences and address them as such.  The most obvious border between the members of this group is that of social class.  This differs so greatly throughout the group, with some members growing up in large homes of the Orchard, and others in trailer parks.  These diverse backgrounds lead to some very different upbringings.  My parents always tried to raise me to accept everyone, regardless of race, religion, class, etc.  But I will admit, at times I had trouble approaching or becoming friends with people in different social classes.  Honors classes in high school were often made up of mostly upper and middle class students, so these were the people I grew up around.  The phamily gave me an opportunity to meet and become friends with people of all social classes.  

Los Primos

Los Primos is located on Clinton St. Clinton Street is part of the downtown area, but it lies on the North Side, which holds most of the towns poverty and crime.  The houses you can see are historic homes, which have not been kept up over the years.  Los Primos shares a building with a laundromat.  This spring, there was a homicide/suicide that occurred at this location, giving example to the claim that Los Primos is in a less desirable part of town.  Across the street lies a Brethren Church.  The most notable business in the location is Inter-Cambio Express, another Latino owned business.  This business exchanges currencies, and offers an affordable way to send money out of the country. They are trying to bridge the gap that their relocation has created and keep in touch with their roots and traditions.

Los Primos itself is located in a small, modest building.  It is clean and well kept, with about 12 tables.  In place of art, there are pictures covering the walls of the food served, with their names in both Spanish and English.  A poster, worthy of any middle school science fair, tells the story of Los Primos, and offers information about the owner, Martin Lopez Sr.  He and his wife run the restaurant, with help from their daughter and son. Behind the counter you can see through a window into the small kitchen.

According to Stats:Indiana, about 14% of Goshen is Latino.   As a Mexican Restaurant, one would think that most of its customers would be of Latino descent.  However, this is not necessarily the case.  There were certainly Latino customers.  Most of the customers on the days I visited though, were Caucasian.  A group of white men sat at a table talking loudly.  White couples sat at tables.  White families tried to control boisterous children.  This observation that more white people came in than Latino people led me to consider how exactly Los Primos can, and does, act as a contact zone between these cultures.  

As with any restaurant, Los Primos’ sole purpose is creating and serving delicious food.  It is stated on their facebook page that, being a family run and oriented business, they aim to create a dining experience where you feel like a member of their family. 

 The most obvious way that Los Primos creates a contact zone is their food.  Food and cuisine play an important part in every culture, and every culture is proud of the unique food they create.  Pride in one’s culture works as a tool to guarantee that the culture is preserved.  Los Primos, by offering an authentic cuisine, offers the opportunity for white Americans to take a journey to Mexico, via their taste buds and full tummies.  Familiarizing oneself with food of other cultures makes you more familiar with the culture itself.  If you appreciate the food, you must also appreciate the cook that created it.  If you appreciate the cook, you must appreciate the recipe he used.  And if you appreciate the recipe, you appreciate the culture that developed it.  

The less obvious tool that Los Primos creates a contact zone with is interaction, communication, and language.  Language often creates a barrier between cultures.  Los Primos works to bridge this barrier.  All of the employees who work at Los Primos speak Spanish. But they are also bilingual.  They leave the comfort zone of their language, stumble over English phonics and grammar, so that they can communicate with their English speaking customers, They take the time to learn your language so that they can create a place where you feel comfortable.  They create a means of communication and in doing so, create a contact zone.  One can also see this on the menu, as it is written in both Spanish and English, as are the names of the food on the wall.  Even the Spanish speaking television has English subtitles.  Los Primos reaches across the boundary of language to familiarize you with their culture.  

Bibliography

Elkhart-Goshen, IN Metro Area. stats.in.edu. Indiana Business Research Center at Indiana

University's Kelley School of Business. 2011-2012.  Web. April 3, 2013.  

Los Primos Restaurant and Catering. Facebook. January 19, 2013.  Web

First Fridays

     Hundreds of people flock to downtown Goshen on the first friday of every month to catch the aptly named celebration of First Fridays.  During these events, locally owned stores stay open until the "late" hour of 9, the smell of food booths fill the street, and there are normally scheduled things to see.  Examples of this are the fire and ice sculptures, jazz concerts, and shopping days.
   
     These evenings bring so much business to small shops.  Working in one of these shops myself, I can truthfully tell you that profits are normally double or even triple what is made on an average Friday night.  And business itself (meaning people coming in and perusing) is at least tenfold.    This is so important, as small businesses are beneficial to the city itself, and the individuals within them.  The event itself is very popular, and has grown in the past several years.  Surrounding towns have come to develop similar events, following Goshen's example.

     All types of people attend First Fridays.  Amish couples serve popcorn from a stand, college students perform in concerts, middle school children flock the comfortable hang out of the Brew, Mexican restaurants are filled with customers, families with young children browse the stores.  Everyone feels welcome during this time.  It is the pride of Goshen, and they are the people who keep it alive.  People interact on the streets, be it to ask where they got their child's face painted, or catching up with an old friend.

     One border that has caused some problems for First Fridays is age.  Middle and high school students are one of the highest attending groups, yet they also cause the most problems.  There is almost always a fist fight downtown, and during the Fire and Ice Celebration, over 5 ice sculptures were broken.  It has gotten to the point where Myron Bontrager, owner of the Brew, has asked for a police officer to be stationed in his cafe.  And the problems have led some to consider stopping first fridays entirely.  Because of these few youngsters, some of the older generation have stopped attending First Fridays.  Those that remain have a tendency of looking at all young people as if they are the ones causing problems.
  

Assembly Mennonite

Assembly Mennonite Church

I attended Assembly Mennonite Church, which is located on the south side of Goshen, at

1201 S 11th St.  This area is a little bit on the scuzzy side, but still well kept.  On one side, there

are factory buildings, and barren yards filled with semi trucks and train cars.  On the other is a

neighborhood with fairly low income housing.  Many of the houses are kept up, but certainly not

in their best shape.  There are far more chain link fences than white picket.  Members of the

congregation come from as close as this neighborhood and as far as Elkhart.  The pastors are

Karl Shelly, Lora Nafzinger, and Jennifer Gingerich.

When one enters Assembly’s building, a space they share with Walnut Hill Daycare, they

are warmly greeted and welcomed by a church member.  Guests are given name tags as they

filter into a modest service.  Folding chairs are used rather than more permanent seats, so that

Walnut Hill can make use of the room as well.  It was important when the church developed that

the space is used by people other than the church, as to contribute more to the community.

There are between one hundred and two hundred seats, almost all filled with chattering, happy

church members.  They are led into the service with song, often one from a foreign place:

Mozambique, or Peru.  This theme of integration of traditional music and that of other nations

continues throughout the service.  The sermons are approachable, and appear to focus more on

the importance of living life in a Christlike manner than piety or fear.  It is obviously a church full

of acceptance, ranging on the liberal side of the Mennonite spectrum.  One speaker discussed

his struggles with being homosexual and a Christian and was then offered support and love from

his community.  The service is followed by an announcement time, in which church members

can share with the group.  These announcements cover everything from asking for prayers for a

sick church member, to information on service opportunities, to sharing the dates of a local

theatres play.

The church members are almost as diverse as they are welcoming.  The majority is

certainly white, but a quick glance around the room makes it easy to see that at least 25% of

churchgoers are black, latino, and asian.  Their voices are part of the service, as they share

different cultural perspectives as well as their personal views.  Young children run about during

the service, drawing on bulletins and playing with blocks.  They go forward for a childrens time in

which they are asked questions and opinions.  Most of the congregation is between 20 and 40

years old, but there are many older members as well.  I recognize several international students

from the college.  In the past few years, Assembly has remained about the same size, perhaps

growing a little.

Audrey Poetker

Audrey Poetker uses common human experiences and emotion to relate her own personal experiences to those of her readers.  Common themes in her poetry include pain, loss, grief, and relationships: elements of life which every human being experiences at some point.  In “Signs of Fertility”, Poetker addresses the universal motherly desire for children and contrasts it with the harsh reality of her own infertility.  The boundary between what one would normally know about her is bridged in this poem as she shares very personal feelings and struggles.    She also addresses the personal border between desire and reality.  This border is one which she cannot change, and “Signs of Fertility” shows how she comes to term with this. The poem is filled with vivid imagery and emotional accounts of aspects of her life. She then uses these to describe to her inability to have children.  An example of this is how, in lines 14 to 18, she relates her mother’s unused china to her unused breasts.  She also begins the poem by referencing “The Robe of Christ at the Cathedral in Trier” (lines 5-6), using religion to relate with her readers.

Fears of Parasites

1.

11:02 PM, daily, an alarm goes off, reminding me

to punch through thin silver foil,

release a small miracle full of hormones,

and place it in my tongue, wash it down with water.

Dark blue one week

Light blue the next

Green,

And finally white.

Some days, I awake vomiting,

My small form unable to take it when I forget a miracle,

and swallow two the next day.

2.

Exactly forty six hours into white

my paranoia begins, grows exponentially.

I wait and wait for hands to grip my insides and turn them inside out.

Wait for myself to burst into tears over irrational insecurities.

For red to stain my sheets at night,

drip onto white porcelain tiles of the shower in the morning.

Such a thing that I hated for so many years

Now causes jubilation.

3.

Vivid dreams of infants pouring forth from my gut,

Filling the Earth: Inevitable overpopulation,

Haunt my dreams at night.

Dreams of my life fade.

I no longer ride on a rickety train through India,

Or stare into nothingness and see everything.

I don’t explore the vast and beautiful outdoors of the world.

Don’t dance to music until my legs collapse.

My lungs no longer fill with smoke.

4.

They are replaced with visions of

a cage, built in the shape of a crib.

Where I am trapped alone and

Infant screams fill my ears.

Or the alternative,

In which I lay in a bright and hostile room

and cry out in unimaginable agony,

Hating myself for destroying a part of my lover and I,

Beautiful parasite of mine: sucked through a tube

for my own souls self preservation.

5.

As one dreams of the removal of a fatal tumor,

I dream of myself dry and barren, for many years to come

As a starving man hopes for food,

I hope for blood,

Saving me from a life I do not want.

This poem is very obviously different from Audrey Poetker’s “Symbols of Fertility”.  Her infertility causes a boundary between her reality and the desire for children and motherly instincts.  I also feel this boundary from those instincts because of my complete lack of desire for children at this point in my life.  I attempted to imitate her use of cycles in the final stanzas by using the cycle of taking birth control throughout the poem.  I also tried to use common human experiences to cross an instinctive boundary that lies between human beings.  I tried to do this through referencing the female menstrual cycle, the common use of birth control, and the idea that ones life is limited when they have children.

Bibliography:

"Mennonite Poetry: Audrey Poetker". goshen.edu. np. 2010. Web. March 30, 2013

\  Poetker, Audrey. "Symbols of Fertility"  A Cappella. Ann Hostetler.  Iowa City: University of Iowa Press. 136-137. Print.

     

      (I apologize that the size is large on the last link.  The formatting for the blog keeps me from changing it.)

Older Sisters

Older Sisters

When we were younger, we were perhaps bullies.  
We saw our siblings admiration and mimicking
became full of ourselves,
then left them to their toys while we went out with our friends.
We love our baby sisters,
but became wrapped up in the world of friends,
became infatuated with boys,
stressed out from school,
while they looked only at us.
As they get older,
We see how we’ve influenced them,
what wonderful people they are becoming,
and we are so proud.
But by then they are wrapped up in the things we ignored them for.
They march in the band,
They go out with friends,
They kiss their boyfriend.
We long to protect them from the things we were hurt by,
Yearn to help them in any problems that arise.
We love them, unconditionally,
As their closets fill with big sisters clothing,
And the hot water is gone when we get in the shower
And they snap at us for getting frustrated,
Those self-entitled little girls.
But we love them.  
Love late nights talking about their life,
And seeing them grow up into strong young women.
They become our best friend.We realize they will be their our entire life,
and that little sibling makes the future
just a little bit more manageable.

The Devil's Highway Response

     The Devil’s Highway explores the ideas of borders and boundaries through a very real and present issue.  The issue of illegal immigration is one that affects thousands of individuals in the United States.  I believe it is fair to say that it is one of the most prominent examples of modern human division in the United States today.  Most Americans obviously see it from a very American standpoint, thinking of how it affects American citizens, rather than seeing the causes of the issue, or the perspective of the immigrant.  The Devil’s Highway does show the perspective of the immigrant, in a very raw and revealing manner.  In doing this, it helps to explore both sides of this created border.  This removes the idea of “us” and “them” that is so prominent in this issue, by depicting characters that have very real, human struggles that everyone, regardless of race or nationality, can relate to.  Every father can relate to a man trying to support his family.  Every husband can see a bit of himself in a man trying to build a home for his wife.  These are the characters depicted in The Devils Highway.  They are men simply trying to do what is best for those that they love.  So where does the issue lie? Are these not all individuals of the same species trying to accomplish the same things?   

     The problem emerges with the creation of borders, which divide people to see differences in one another.  There is the border of race, between white Americans and Latino immigrants.  The simple characteristic of skin tone leads to a slew of racial separations.  It is the difference between whether or not you get your passport checked near the border.  This leads to issues of nationality and citizenship.  These are some of the most prominent of issues in The Devils Highway.  The book would be non-existent without these borders.  Because we created these ideas, we created the separation of “us” and “them”.  We separate people by where they were born and decide that this makes them fundamentally different than us, makes them unworthy of being where we are.  It causes the struggles of border crossers, as they cannot simply enter America in hopes of a better life.

             Obviously, there will be cultural differences between countries.  These are in part shaped by class differences.  Those of a less economically stable country will live more modest lifestyles.  They will perhaps live in more closely knit family structures.  They will be more likely to do work that those of a more economically stable will not.  These simple differences in lifestyle create cultural differences which instill borders between people.  Those from one side of a national border believe those on the other side are different.  Humans find differences between individuals that are really quite similar and use them to justify unfair treatment of these “different” people.  The Devils Highway reminds us that though somebody may be different, may be separated by a border of race, nationality, or citizenship, they are still human.  They still desire to support their family.  They still hope for a better life.  They may have come from a different place, but they are built of the same human characteristics, instincts, and desires.