Post by kitrascribe on Nov 17, 2019 0:57:31 GMT -6
Kitra sat in a less-than-busy computer room checking her email. This was Thanksgiving which was a big deal in the United States, but which had precious little to do with her. Her ancestors, were busy killing each other, and living off the fat of the land while the Pilgrims starved in Massachusetts.
She knew what she was looking for... notice from the Archdiocese of Santa Fe that her pocket money request had cleared. Begin broke sucked. If she had money, she could join a bunch of high schoolers at the Cafe de June, not that she liked the food. Sometimes American food was surprisingly good, but American yams tasted like sugar or metal, and American potatoes tasted like soap.
"Hmmmm...." Kitra thought. That was odd. No, that was humorous. The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) had emailed her. Were they asking for money? Fat chance, she'd have any to give them. She opened the email for yucks.
Dear Ms. Ordonez, it began. Now what was with that! "The Archdiocese of Santa Fe let us know your address and I hope this letter finds you well. This is a heads up to let you know that one of our attorney's will be visiting the school. We have located your parents, and siblings. For more information I can be reached at 201-377-4562. Please call any time. This is a personal number and I will pick up."
"This is someone's idea of a sick joke," Kitra told herself as she scanned the rest of her email. Sure enough there was an email from Father Jeremiah down in Santa Fe. "Dear Kitra," it began. She was suddenly dear to everyone on this holiday alone. "I hope this letter finds you well. Your monthly allowance has been deposited. That should come as a great relief. Also, pursuant to the 9th Circuit decision, I gave the ACLU lawyer permission to help reunite you with your family. Let us just say the Lord works in unusual ways."
Kitra felt sick and dizzy with shock. She rose from her computer and looked out the window. It was gray, freezing rain, soon snow. Her blue quilted coat, someone else' cast off, was leaking stuffing in a few places and the sleeves were frayed. It wasn't going to make it through the winter, even with a patch job. "I'll be broke again before the end of the month," she told herself. Now the question was whether to go eat with the high schoolers or return to her dormitory to walk with the girls left behind in her suite to eat Thanksgiving in the dining hall. The food would be equally bad in both places, though the dining hall had more choices, and would NOT take the last five dollars she saved for an emergency.
Today was not her holiday but it was not an emergency either. As Kitra put on her coat, her campus pass nearly fell out of her pocket. She recovered it. It was a piece of plywood cut to the size of a business size envelope, on it was painted the words Feynman 1-A Campus Pass. Kitra held the pass in her mismatched, mittened hand. She clattered down Academic 2's steps and crossed the half deserted campus toward the middle school houses. She swiped her way into Feynman and then into the suite. Of the eight of them, plus Solange, the SA, seven were still on campus. Only Ariane had flown home.
"I'm glad you bothered to show up," Senora Solange greeted Kitra.
"I'm on time," the girl protested.
"Alright everyone, line up, size order." That put Kitra's roommate, Agape, at the front of the line and Carla with her clover leaf dome for a head second. Kitra came third. Normally Ariane would have been last, but instead it was Njeri, who came from Tanzania. It wasn't Njeri's holiday either. Her indirect ancestors came to the New World stuffed like so much merchandise into the bowels of the Middle Passage. Of course Kitra sort of had something for which to be thankful. Too bad most of the stores that mattered were closed today. Now if she could snag a ride to Coeur D'Alene, she'd have a shot at keeping some of her money after buying a coat. She also needed at least one calligraphy pen for Mandarin. For a few seconds Kitra was sure that someone had hacked her bank account where the Archdiocese of Santa Fe deposited funds. She was sure of it and was about to step out of the line and tell Solange she needed another campus pass, when she reminded herself that she had no reason for blind panic, and that's what it had to be. She turned back to Carla."Gotcha!" she said softly. Carla did not blink her dull beady eyes. It certainly wasn't Carla's holiday either.
"How much are you getting?" Carla asked.
"You don't know..."
"It feels like you won the lottery, but I know you didn't."
"Going from nothing to something is a big deal," she told Carla.
"Ladies let's go!" the SA bellowed, and they were off to eat.