The Mountain, The Shelter, and The Ranch Antonio's Story

By David Wagnon

Copyright 2011 David N. Wagnon Jr. 1

Introduction

This is a story about a young man who has reached a critical point in his life, but he doesn't know it yet. He is about to embark on a most interesting and at times scary adventure, but it is also the path to contentment and peace. In a way his life seems to be over, but it is really only beginning. Our lives are such strange and interesting things, each person's experiences are different, yet there is a common thread that can be addressed just as Jesus did when He told the story of the prodigal son or the servant and the talents. We all have certain events in our lives that can be distilled into parables. There are days when we most certainly feel the same as the people around us, and other days when no one seems to understand what we are going through at all. We are all sort of out there wandering around hoping to find the thing that makes life worth the trouble of living. Sadly, some give up before they attain that goal. All around us are people who think they have found the answers, their answers are usually complicated and involve some sort of activity in the world, mostly philanthropic, religious, business related, political or merely escapist. But the true answer is simple, life in the fullness of God is the harbor we are all bound for if we want to find peace and purpose in our lives. In this story most of these avenues are shut off by circumstances and there is no future for the characters except by way of the care and guidance of God. At this present time in history there are few options for many of us as well, there are few jobs, and practically no prospects for those of us who are older. The world economy is in the process of tanking, big time, and is on life support. There is nowhere for us to turn for relief except to God. Why is it that God's door is nearly always the last one we knock on? You may notice in this story there is an extensive use of Spanish by the characters, which is part and parcel to life in New Mexico. Spanish, Mexican, and Native American cultures are intertwined in New Mexico's history, these are things that help to make New Mexico a fascinating place to live in and visit, as well as a great place to set a story. If you are stumped by a new word, Google translate will surely help. So read and enjoy, I love to hear from my readers, so drop me an e-mail if you like at;

dwagnon@gmx.com Tell me if you like the story, or if you think it stinks. All feedback is welcome. David Wagnon July 25, 2011

The Mountain My name is Antonio de Paquim, I am a shepherd and I tend sheep in the summers in the Santa Fe National Forest. It is a wonderful job if you like peace and quiet. I generally hang out in places where the tourists don't go and I get to match wits with cougars, coyotes, and black bears. I have to be vigilant to protect my woolly charges, with nothing but my good old dog Blue and my .30-30 and maybe an occasional friendly hiker to keep me company. Blue is a border collie, Australian cattle dog (Kelpie) mix, he is big, smart, and fearless and plenty good company. When I do have some unexpected human company I try to offer them something like a cup of coffee or share a meal or at least have a nice chat, depending on the circumstances. The owner of the flock, my boss, negotiates the grazing allotment, which changes from year to year. But this time I have been a little north of the Valles Caldera for this summer and last summer as well. I have my old pickup truck to store my things in and a small but comfortable trailer to sleep in, really, I would have to say that I have it pretty good. My dog Blue tells me when there's some critter sneaking around the flock and we stay pretty keen out here in the fresh mountain air. So one day, early in the summer, we found a freshly killed young buck which told me that the local cougar was full of venison and probably sleeping, and later I climbed a hill and spotted the she black bear I had been keeping an eye on tearing up rotten logs and finding plenty of grubs to eat with her two cubs, so I had a relaxing evening thinking that for once we would not have to get up in the middle of the night to walk around the herd and look for tracks. I built a fire outside in the pit I had dug, and we had a pretty good supper Blue and me. Then we settled next to the fire and I held up my blankets to let the fire's heat under the covers before I went to sleep, I slept soundly and sure enough just as Blue and I had thought, nothing disturbed our well earned rest. I woke up later in the night, from the look of the sky I could tell it was still before midnight and all I heard was an owl making some strange noises. Blue was asleep, and I didn't disturb him 'cause I knew if there was something around he would jump up in a second, so I though it best to let him alone. I looked at the stars for a while counting the little meteor trails I saw and before I knew it I was back asleep. I dreamed a strange dream, I was walking in the Valle Grande in the Valles Caldera, the gigantic caldera of the old volcano which is the centerpiece of these mountains. The Valle Grande is part of the floor of the caldera and it is flat as the bottom of a frying pan with the mountainous edges and domes of the caldera all around, Cerro del Medio was on my left hand, and Redondo Peak was at my back. I started to climb Pajarito Mountain
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in that funny way that you do in dreams where you climb the entire mountain in about five minutes. I wandered around the summit of Pajarito until I could see the town of Los Alamos down below, which is about as close to town as I had been in a month. I was watching the occasional car or truck wind around the streets when I noticed a low growling sound, I quickly looked around me to be sure that I wasn't being watched by a bear or a cougar, but that was not the source of the growling. I realized that it was the mountain that was growling, so I sort of busted a gut to get off Pajarito and I ended up on top of Cerro Grande, but whenever I stopped long enough to listen I could hear the growling there too, along with a low rumble. Well I was good and spooked by then so I headed back over to the bottom of the caldera and when I got there it was quieter. I walked along the streambed of the Jemez River in the Valle Grande and found it completely dry, I was puzzled at this since I had seldom seen the river in that condition. So I headed off in the direction of the Valle San Antonio to find some water and while I was climbing Cerro San Luis I woke up. I was a little dazed by the dream and as I came back to myself, I was more than a little glad that we were quite some distance north of the caldera itself, the memory of that ominous rumbling still bothered me. In the next couple of days I thought about the dream and I thought 'Sure I know it is a volcano, what else am I gonna dream about it, but that some fumarole or some such thing will break out. It was nothing, the power of suggestion.' I tried hard to forget it, well at least I didn't think about it much during the day, while I was working. I had been out there for a month and a half when my boss came and relieved me for a couple of days and gave me a small advance on my wages, so Blue and I went to Bernalillo for a day and we stayed in a cheap motel, and you better believe that I stayed in that hot shower for about an hour. Then I went to a good barber I knew and got a haircut. Thoroughly refreshed and smelling nice, I went to a restaurant I was familiar with, and ate my fill of chile rellenos with a big bowl of pozole and a beer or two to wash it down. There was a pretty lady waiting on me who impressed me with her eye contact, her ready smile and her attention to my few needs. As she brought the check for the meal she noticed my glassy look and she asked, Digesting? I thought for a second and said Well more like savoring. I am usually cooking for myself and talking to my dog this time of the evening. I am a sheepherder on his day off, Antonio de Paquim's the name. And I offered her my hand. Ha Antonio, I am usually just doing this most nights, I'm Estella, Estella Cicuy. and she shook my hand. Well I don't want to seem too forward and desperate, but after that great meal the only
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other thing I am missing is conversation, Do they ever give you a break in this joint? I said hopefully. Well as a matter of fact I am about to go on my supper break, I get thirty minutes, how would that be? If you don't mind just watching me chew sometimes. she said. Oh no, I would love it. I said not believing my luck. Estella stood almost as tall as I was and she was slender, with rich brunette hair and a sort of round face with an easy smile and dancing brown eyes, she had certainly brightened my afternoon. She ordered her meal and we sat and chatted as she waited for it. I learned that she lived in the Jemez Pueblo just up the highway, she was living with her mother and younger sister and while she didn't mind working as a waitress she really hoped she could eventually find something more challenging to do. And in fact she was learning to make jewelry in the tradition of some of her people's artists. I thought, 'what a nice girl, maybe I can be frank with her'. So I told her how I enjoyed my solitary job and that while I am not really a hermit I did crave peace and the sound of the wind blowing in the trees. And that I loved the challenge of tracking and keeping the predators at bay. And that I didn't even mind the sheep too much either. I told her about how I was just hired for the summer season and that I would come back to civilization, once the sheep were loaded up to go south to their winter pastures. We chatted amiably 'til her break was over. So I asked her, "would you like to go get a cup of coffee, when you get off tonight?" "Sure, she said, I get off at 9:30, OK?" "OK, I will meet you here" I replied. Well if you had wanted to, you could have knocked me flat with a chopstick. I liked her, she was unpretentious, warm, and oh so pretty, well, at least I thought so. It was still a few hours 'til 9:30 so I went back to my room to walk Blue and let him stretch his legs. I could barely wait for the time to pass, but it wasn't too long before I was pulling up in my truck just in time to see her coming out the door. Hi, Estella said as she hopped in. Howdy ma'am, I said, Is that truck stop over there good enough for us to grab a cup and chat? Sure, she said and they won't be throwing us out at 10 or 10:30 or anything like that. Just what I was thinking. I said, we drove over, went in and sat down at a booth,
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ordered coffee and cinnamon rolls, and before long we were talking about where we grew up, our childhood dreams, how disappointing our lives had been since high school, and we had both had our small ambitions in life. We just kept finding things to talk about, she told me how she had played clarinet in the High School band, and I told her that I learned to play guitar and still did on occasion. Estella told me about her people, how they were originally from the Pecos Pueblo, which was also called Cicuy, a once great and prosperous Pueblo near Glorieta Pass which had slowly diminished and died out with the few survivors seeking shelter among their kinsmen, the people of Jemez Pueblo. Now there were very few of their group left even among the Jemez people. For my part I told her about my father, how he came to the states from Nuevo Casas Grandes, a little town in Chihuahua, Mexico, and how I was born in the US, a citizen, but my father and mother died in an automobile accident, and for a while I sent money back to my grandmother in Chihuahua, but now she is gone, and I am alone. So, Estella said, your people are Indios much like mine? Yes, I replied, I suppose we are somewhat related. My grandmother used to say that our people came from Paquim or Casas Grandes which is very much like an ancient Pueblo, that is why my last name is de Paquim, so I guess our heritage is not so different. After we had talked for about an hour I thought that I really didn't want to keep her up all night so I asked her if we should go. Antonio, I really am enjoying our talk, she said, but you're right to ask, if I get home too late my mother does start to worry. OK, I can certainly understand that. I said, remembering all of the times, when as a kid, I had worried my poor mother. Hey listen, do you mind if I introduce you to somebody special? Uh Oh, so you're married after all! Estella said looking a bit disappointed. No, no, I said laughing, I am just talking about my dog Blue! We can pick him up on our way to drop you at your car. Whew she said wiping her brow in mock relief, I was hoping it was something like that, I like dogs! Good, I said as I was paying the check. 'cause I think he will like you too. The truck stop wasn't very far from my little motel, so in just a little while Blue was sitting between us and smelling Estella's offered hand. Somehow he really took to her, he liked her so much, I was beginning to wonder if she had snuck some tidbit out of the
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diner to bribe him with. See, she said, he likes me as much as I like him. Ah yes, I am glad, I was all ready to grab him if he didn't. Well seeing as how my best friend likes you so much, I figure that I should tell you something I haven't told anybody else. I have the feeling that you will understand it and see how it has been bothering me. So as I stopped at the next stop light I launched into the story of the dream that I had about Pajarito Mountain and how I didn't know what to make of it. When I finished, Estella just sat there for a moment absent mindedly stroking Blue's ears. Wow, that one is pretty serious. She said, You know, I am not an expert on dreams, Antonio, but my mother is and if you don't mind I would like to ask her about your dream. Sure, please do, I said, I don't mind asking for some help on this one. Oh, here we are at your car. I saw her to her car and we shook hands and she kissed me on the cheek, and said Thanks for being a gentleman, Antonio. Thank you for listening, I said, blushing. Then she took a pad out of her purse and scribbled her name, address and cell phone number on it, and handed it to me. Listen, I wouldn't mind doing this again some time, and I know you probably can't call me while you are up in the mountains. So why don't you call me the next time you get to town. After all I need to tell you what my mother is going to say about your dream. She said, smiling. Alright, thank you. Well, give my regards to your mama and your sister, and drive safe. I said. OK, bye for now Antonio, good-bye Blue! She said and I noticed that Blue's ears pricked up when she mentioned his name. I stood there waving 'til she was out of sight and Blue and I went back to our room and a
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good night's rest. The next day I sat down and wrote Estella a thank you note and I told her about the P.O. box in Cuba, NM where she could write back to me as long as she mailed it before mid August when my boss picked up any mail which might be waiting for us. I had a big breakfast at a cafe, then I went to a grocery store and bought some supplies and I mailed the note on my way out of town. After a longish drive we were back on duty watching the woollies. We had about a month and a half to go, but I enjoyed the time in the high meadows and among the trees, and every once in a while I would remember Estella's laugh when we were kidding each other during our chat. It helped me to think that she would be a phone call away when I would be coming back down from the mountain. So I was pleasantly surprised to get an answer to my note from Estella when my boss came up in August and brought my mail with him. Late in the evening after supper, when my boss was gone, I took a special delight in opening Estella's letter. She said she hoped I was well and safe, then she said that she felt she should write to me because of what her mother had told her about my dream. Her mother said that my dream was a prophetic one from God, which was meant to warn me to be on my toes because one day soon the mountain would blow up, and I would do well to be ready. I can honestly say that I was surprised by the message, but at the same time there was something about it that felt strangely right. Anyway, Estella expressed her hope that she would see me when the season was over and told me to stay safe. Well I must say that the letter was a tonic for a man with a lonely job, I was glad to have my work each day to pass the time, and I could also look forward to seeing Estella at the end of the season. Finally the day came when my boss showed up with some big old trucks and we had to count and load the sheep, it is a big job and Blue and I were busy from very early in the morning until finally in the middle of the afternoon we were done and my boss thanked me and gave me my check. We shook hands and I went to my truck, Blue was already sitting up in the seat ready to go. I threw my check in the glove box and double checked my trailer hitch and we were off. I decided to take the highway which would take me through Jemez Springs and on down through Jemez Pueblo towards Bernalillo, so that I might get a chance to see Estella, I was about to turn onto highway 4 and head south when I heard the loudest most gosh awful noise I have ever heard in my life. I looked out to the east and saw a smoke column all mixed with fire rising above the caldera, and the ground was shaking. I hustled on down to the intersection with Highway 4 and I punched the accelerator. Blue and I passed Battleship Rock and the Soda Dam all in a blur, I tried to find a radio station to hear the news, but all I was getting was some terrible elevator music. I turned the radio off in disgust and just when I was passing through Jemez Springs there was fiery stuff and small stones pelting everybody and everything. And let me tell you the folks who weren't still loading their stuff in their cars and trucks or standing and staring at the mountain, were skee-daddling just like me. I was still some distance from Jemez
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Pueblo though and I was trying to remember the nights that Estella had said she worked. I thought to myself, 'Aw shoot, I should just call and see what is going on there.' As soon as I had a signal on my cell phone I called Estella's number and her mother answered, Estella was at work and had their only car and they were stuck and the Sheriff's deputy was saying everybody ought to evacuate. So I arranged to meet her near the highway that runs through the Pueblo. The highway between Jemez Springs and the Pueblo is curvy and goes up and down with many hills and arroyos and my stomach felt funny as we sped up over the tops and hit the bottoms. Blue whined a little and looked worried, I told him I am worried too, Bud! Finally I passed the school and the Walatowa visitors center, which is the sign that you are only a couple of long hills away from the Pueblo. When I got to the Pueblo, I pulled off the highway where Estella's mother told me to. Before I rolled to a stop I had to brake hard for a couple of trucks that came barreling out of the Pueblo. Fortunately the drivers were as worried as I was that they might hit someone and we didn't hit each other. I left Blue in charge of the truck and went in search of Mrs. Cicuy, I rounded a corner and heard a shout, Antonio? and I saw an older woman with a teenaged girl heading straight for me. Mrs. Cicuy? I called. Yes, she cried, Antonio, there are so many people who do not have cars can you take more? I scratched my head, Well I have the back of my truck and my trailer, I don't know how many will fit, but now is not the time to quibble. Mrs. Cicuy handed the things she was carrying to her daughter and went back to get her neighbors. You are?' I asked the daughter. Anna was her reply. Anna, here is my truck and I better introduce you to my dog. I said in haste. Blue looked over the stranger in bewilderment, but then he actually seemed happy to have company. OK, I said, I need to go help your Mom. When I caught up with her, Mrs. Cicuy was leading about ten people with their bags and bundles in our general direction. I started doing some mental arithmetic, and the pelting sounds of small stuff falling from the sky lent an urgency to my deliberations. Alright! I shouted as I ran a little ahead and unlocked my trailer. I'll take five people and sit you on the floor.

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I had my five people settled so I told them, Hang on, pad yourselves with your bundles and ride on the floor and do not stand up till we get where we are going. I am hoping the rest of you can fit in the back, I said as I opened the topper, everybody managed to squeeze in, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Mrs. Cicuy I reckon we can fit in the cab with my dog and Anna. I said. It seemed to take forever to get everyone settled, we were pushing the bundles into corners and between people, so they wouldn't get thrown around too severely when we took off, but soon we crowded into the cab with Blue and Anna, and we got underway. The pumice stones were falling like hail and making quite a racket and there was a dense and dangerous looking cloud of ash that seemed to get a little lower all the time, but we had a strong wind out of the northwest and I think it helped keep the lighter stuff airborne, at least for a while. So I eased the truck into the highest speed we could manage with all of our loose passengers and the traffic ahead of us. It took ten minutes to travel the five miles to San Ysidro, but with the menacing ash clouds and the rocks falling around us it seemed like an hour. When we turned onto highway 550 towards Bernalillo we were able to pick up the pace some and we had left the rain of small rocks behind. We opened up the windows between the cab and the topper and Mrs. Cicuy called out reports on our progress to those in the back to encourage them. When we passed the Zia Pueblo I figured that we were 50 miles from the caldera and looking back we saw a gigantic, thick, squat, shock of a smoke column rising from the caldera with fire shot all through it, and big streaks of fire going in all directions. The high level winds had already started to carry the ash plume off to the East, which threw an impenetrable veil over Los Alamos and Santa Fe. I was flabbergasted at the size of what I was seeing. It covered most of the horizon and made the evening sun look dark and eerie. We made our way into Bernalillo and as we approached town we noticed that the State Police had blocked all traffic going the other direction. I imagined that Estella must have been frantic when she saw the eruption, and tried to head home, but the State Troopers would have stopped her before she got out of town. Mrs. Cicuy tried repeatedly to call the restaurant with Estella's cell phone, but after she had just about given up, the phone rang. It was Estella, she had thought she had her phone with her until she looked in her purse, so she gave her own number a try, when we pulled into the parking lot, everybody was outside watching the eruption. Estella spotted us and ran to greet us with joyful shouts and tears of relief. It was great to see their reunion, I watched for a second and then I remembered all of my passengers and how uncomfortable they must be. The people who had been riding inside the trailer were the most shocked upon emerging and seeing the eruption. The danger, of being tossed into the wall or my table
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or sink, or each other, had kept them safe on the floor unable to see where we were going or what was happening. There were sad tears as they realized that it would be quite some time before they would be able to return to their homes, if ever. I was so glad to see that no one had been badly injured by the rough ride that I hugged each person and said, We are alive! hoping to buoy their spirits. The passengers from the back of the truck were climbing out and one of them said, What are we going to do? Mr. Garza, Estella's boss, who was standing nearby, suddenly had a moment of extreme clarity. Things may be bad, he said, and it could certainly have been far worse for us here now, and it may very well be much worse here tomorrow. So he called the cooks and wait-staff together and said Listen up! We have these wonderful people here who were snatched from the furnace, let us feed them on the house so that whatever comes next for them will be easier for them to tolerate, and for that matter let us all eat as we may and invite others in, for we can not tell what lies ahead. So, heartened by his generous and practical offer we all retired into the restaurant to be fed and encouraged, and for some time afterward we were pulling people in, off the street, neighbors from the Pueblos or Jemez Springs and we brought them in and fed them with all of us taking turns at waiting and bussing. I was busy trying to write an order down when I was momentarily distracted by Estella's beaming smile. I got the order turned in to the kitchen and I turned around to find Estella throwing her arms around me and then she gave me a big kiss. She said Thank you Antonio, you saved my family, my neighbors and my friends. I said, Estella dear, it was my selfish hope to find you at home that put me in the right place to bring everyone out. I only did what fell into my lap. She looked me in the eyes and said, What matters to me is that you were there by God's hand and now they are safe. And she kissed me again. Now you might understand how I found this to be the high point of a very long day. And I began to thank God for every minute of it. Then we heard a small noise and looked up to see Blue licking his chops. Someone from the kitchen had set out a bowl in the entry way of the restaurant with many goodies for him, he had such a satisfied look on his face that we just had to laugh. And yes in
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feeding anyone who came through the doors that evening and night discipline had broken down to the extent that refugee's dogs were being fed in the entryway, Oh well. As we worked that night we kept an ear open to the news reports for someone had turned on the television and the Albuquerque stations had suspended the regular programming and started constant news updates. Los Alamos seemed to be buried and Santa Fe was under about 4-6 feet of ash, with more on the way. All of the Pueblos east of Los Alamos had suffered considerably, and we had as many reports from people whom we drew in off the highway and fed as we did from the television news. The eruption was not slowing down at all, the highway to Taos was impassable and the Rio Grande was all ashy, sludgy mud. So later that evening when we were just about pooped out I called Mrs. Cicuy and Estella and Anna together and said, They are not going to let us go back to the pueblo, should we see if anyone wants to go with us to find a Red Cross shelter? Maybe in Albuquerque? They were willing to ask around, we started asking their friends and neighbors, and I asked the ones whom I recognized from our earlier mad dash. Then I heard them announce the location of the shelters on the television, so we were able to go straight to the shelter, instead of wasting time searching for it. I thought that Mrs Cicuy and the girls might appreciate some more privacy than the shelter could afford so I offered to let them use my trailer while Blue and I slept in the back of the truck. You would think that I had offered them a million dollars. But I am happy to report that they were not too proud to accept. So we dropped our load of neighbors and friends at the shelter proper and we went on to find a quiet place to park alongside the road across the street from the shelter to spend the night. It was a strange night, for the glow of the volcano's fiery display lit up the night sky to the north, and a distant rumble which I fancied sounded like artillery was a constant reminder that all was not well. I showed the ladies around the trailer's limited features, but they were happy to have this step up from the cots in the shelter, and they thanked me. I said my good nights and Blue and I made a once around of the truck and trailer to be certain we hadn't forgotten anything. Then we climbed into the back of the truck and crashed hard. I don't know about Blue, but I didn't open my eyes until 9 the next morning which felt so very odd to me since we had been getting up before dawn for three and a half months. The Shelter Estella had kept an eye out for us to wake up and said Good morning sleepy heads,
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when Blue and I opened the hatch of the topper. She said, if you hurry you might be able to get some breakfast at the shelter. I didn't wake you because I thought you might want sleep more than food, but since you are up, let's go. While I got out of the back of the truck and stretched, Estella was kind enough to take Blue out in the adjacent field to relieve himself, then I poked around to find my shaving kit. When she returned I was ready to go, so we left Blue in the front seat, to guard the truck, a job which he seemed to relish, and we headed in to the shelter even as a group of buses pulled up and started unloading people. I asked if we had to register and Estella said My Mom and I and Anna registered earlier. All you need to do is show them your ID and answer a few questions. Inside the shelter was the kind of controlled chaos you might expect, even so I got through registration pretty quick. There was quite a line for breakfast and because of that, there was no danger that they would stop serving breakfast any time soon. I looked around and spotted the men's facilities, and told Estella that I would be back in a jiffy and attended to my morning toilet with some thirty other men. As with any group of people who are suddenly uprooted from their routines there were signs in this large mass of people at the shelter that many were afraid. Lots of people had tried to set themselves up in their old neighborhoods, that is, they tried to surround themselves with people they knew. Some people were so concerned they might lose their cots that they sent their children to get breakfast for them. It was good to see Estella's smiling face in the midst of these anxious faces, and soon there were two more as Estella's mother and Anna joined us, they said good morning, to which I replied Good morning Mrs. Cicuy, Anna. Mrs. Cicuy said, Antonio you may call me Marta, after all we have been through a lot together, and perhaps since you are our landlord we should call you Seor de Paquim. I said, Thank you for the honor Marta, but shoot, if I am your landlord then the only rent I should charge would be our continued friendship. We have ended up in the same boat, at least for now, the only difference is that I happened to be towing my house behind me when the caldera blew up. I only intend to make the best of our situation, so let's not dwell on the awkward matter of my owning the trailer. However, I would like to ask you how you have become so familiar with dreams, for you hit the meaning of my dream right on the head. Oh and by the way thank you for the warning, Blue and I were more than ready to run away, instead of gawking at the eruption as so many people along the highway did.

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Marta said, Antonio if you will thank anyone for the warning, thank God. I have often wondered when He would bring you to us, for He spoke to me concerning you once before. So now I was hooked, Alright Marta, I am intrigued by what you are saying, and you have my undivided attention, how did all this come about. I will tell you all I can when we sit down to eat. She said wisely for now we had come to the food, so we got our trays of food and utensils and found a place where we could all sit together. I caught Estella's eye as we sat down and she suddenly seemed a little shy. We sat down and ate for we were all hungry, I had no idea that being displaced was such a strain. When we had all eaten our fill, I got up and got some more coffee for us, and settled in for the story. Marta started off, When I was a little girl my mother was a good Catholic and I watched her as she voluntarily slaved for the priests day in and day out, cleaning their living quarters and the church, and doing their laundry. Over the years the priests seemed to always be on the way to a bigger parish or more responsibilities and it seemed that no priest was ever there, at our little church, more than a year. Some of them were OK and were not difficult fellows, but there was one priest from Mexico City who was always treating my mother like dirt, I often heard him cursing Indios under his breath, and I suspected him of stealing the funds he collected for the poor, the poor certainly got very little from the collection. Then the day came when I was a young woman of fourteen and this bad priest made a grab for me, he had waited until I was alone and sweeping in the sanctuary and he had tried to sneak up behind me. His mistake was in grabbing me when I had a broom in my hand. I beat his head with the broom handle, until he was bloodied and released his grip on me, and I fled the church, never to cross it's threshold again. You see, many of the people in the church were fooled by that old candle seller, but I wasn't and I had always kept one eye on him. I only helped clean the church because my mother asked me to, but after that, no more. I was ashamed to tell my mother what had happened, but I had to, for I needed her to understand why I would not go back. My mother made a complaint to his superiors, but nothing came of it. So from that point on I realized that the church my mother considered holy was a haven for thieves and lechers. I was torn, for I knew when I walked out in the mountain meadows in springtime that I could sense God, His hand was in every leaf I saw and every flower I admired, but partly because of my experience and partly because of the endless and thankless toil I saw my mother give out of a guilty conscience, I was extremely wary of men who came masquerading as God's messengers.
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So I made up my mind, I said to God I know that St. Joan could hear You, and Moses and the Prophets could hear You, I want to learn how to hear You, I want to learn the truth from You, Lord! So I spent a lot of time praying and alternately listening, and He spoke to me, He spoke to me and told me that He loved me, and that I had made the right decision. I hardly knew how to contain my joy, I have walked with Him ever since, and He has taken me through some of the hardest days of my life with the promise of His love and the comfort of His presence. So in the course of time I began to share everyday things with Him, and I learned that if I shared my dreams with Him He would tell me what they meant. Still later I learned that it did not matter how old the dream was, I asked him about a dream I had when I was a child and He told me all about it. Then I started asking Him about the dreams my children were having, whenever they would tell me about them. He even warned me in a dream before my husband was killed in a construction accident. Knowing something which is about to happen does not empower you the way the rest of the world thinks it might, instead it allows you to depend on Jesus more and He has always been with us, through thick and thin. Antonio, I would guess you were raised Catholic? Yes, I said, And I know that when I was in the parish school my classmates and I all had a very clear idea of which priests and which nuns to stay away from. Looking back, I know that we should have said something to our parents, but back then you just didn't say anything bad about a priest or nun. As for knowing God I have always felt that I am closer to God in my lonely occupation out among the trees than I ever was at church under the watchful eyes of those priests we didn't trust. Ah, then you can understand Antonio, how it is comforting to hear God Himself say that He loves you and all is well. It is my experience that we don't need priests and a lot of ritual, we just need Him. Marta said. I thought about this for a while and then I said, Marta, I noticed a feeling I have whenever I come back to be among town folks in the winter, I sorely miss being out alone and feeling so close to God and I really have trouble with the noise and bustle of the people around me. It makes me long for the next season. You see, I have to wait a long time because I get the sheep to watch over, after the shearing in the spring. You are yearning for the silence because God fills in the vacancy, He is your companion when you are out there, the next step is for you to learn to hear Him, if you want to learn I can teach you, it is not difficult, but it is something which you must want
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to do. God wants us to seek Him, He made that clear when He said, Seek and you shall find. Marta said. Oh that would explain why I have often felt that I am not alone when Blue and I are out listening to the breeze in the trees, hmm, I guess I am not crazy after all. But Marta, you said that He told you about me? I asked. Yes Antonio, he told me that we would meet a shepherd and that he would help us to leave the Pueblo. I was thinking that by shepherd He might have meant a man of God, but you see He has a wonderful sense of humor, He really did send us a shepherd. She said, her eyes twinkling merrily. Yes, that is funny, I have seen God's sense of humor in the crazed frolics of the lambs, and in the way Blue is fascinated with little creepy things in the woods, Blue doesn't hurt them, he just watches them. Of course if I am the one He was talking about, and it certainly sounds like it, I am glad to oblige. I said. Well we were certainly glad He sent you. You have been a great help to us at a time when we may have lost our home forever. Estella said. Antonio, Estella is going in to work today would you go with her? I would feel better if you were with her since there is so much turmoil going on. Marta said. Ok, I said turning to Estella, what time should we go? I probably need to get in line for the shower now, Estella said. Alright I will get in line to take one too, and I will meet you back at the trailer. I said. On my way I remembered to get a bottle of water to put in Blue's water dish. So when I got to the truck I set Blue up with a bowl of food and the fresh water, he watched me as I worked, but mostly he was distracted by the smells from all of the people who walked by and looked at him through the truck window. I got my clean clothes and towels and I took the opportunity while I was in the shower line to see where all of the fellows around me had evacuated from, and many, many of them had come from the various Pueblos. As we chatted about it they were amazed that I was so close to the mountain when it erupted. I told them that I just floored the accelerator and went the other way as fast as I could. After the shower I felt a lot better, I checked on Blue and found him sitting with Anna and watching her closely, He seemed to be very comfortable with her, so I told him to be a good boy and said good bye to Anna. I joined Estella in her car and we started off and Estella headed for State
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Highway 528 and after looking for it for a while we settled in on it where it is called Alameda Boulevard just before it changes it's name to Rio Rancho Drive. We were moving along quite nicely toward Bernalillo when we spotted a roadblock ahead in the distance near US 550, Estella was ready for that possibility and she turned into a neighborhood and took a back alley way to the restaurant. We were not quite prepared for what we found at the restaurant. It seems that the front yard of the restaurant was the closest place to the volcano on the east side of the road blocks that the TV news crews could find. They had set themselves up in the front yard of the restaurant, they had a little riser and they were taking turns doing their reports with the huge column of ash and fire in the background. Every once in a while another big satellite truck would lumber in from the Interstate, there were already four large trucks behind the restaurant when we got there and there were more on the way. Mr. Garza was bursting with good humor, for his prompt action in freely feeding the refugees had yielded this strange fruit, the word had gotten around about his generosity to the Albuquerque TV stations and when those reporters came down to interview him, they saw what a perfect place it was to do stories on the eruption. As a consequence, each news team and Network was paying him by the day for a permanent parking space and for a table in the restaurant for composing and sending in their written stories and for the occasional meal for a crew member. The boss was mighty happy that he had gone ahead and installed wi-fi, because a fair number of the reporters were e-mailing their stories in. This made it a different kind of day for Estella, there were still about twelve tables which were not reserved for the reporters and lots of locals were coming in to check out the excitement. Of course the view which was to be had from the windows of the restaurant gave nearly all of the customers a ring side seat on the eruption and on the news coverage. After I made sure Estella was safely inside, Mr. Garza approached me and asked me if I would mind doing a job for him to keep all of his new tenants happy. He had drawn up a diagram of the parking lot and the empty field behind the restaurant with boxes all over for each of the permanent parking spaces, and avenues for vehicles to come and go between these spaces. I was to present each new arrival with the diagram and offer them whatever space was available and Mr. Garza had come up with a reasonable rate which most of the trucks found acceptable. Periodically, I was to visit each truck and see if they needed anything because we learned rather quickly that many of these folks ate at their work stations. If I had any extra time I was to patrol the media tables inside, pouring coffee, and cleaning up where needed. There was a cork board which was divided just like the parking diagram and we thumb tacked the food order checks to each space. Well, I was just glad that I didn't have to sit on my hands while Estella worked, and it was interesting work too. When I was waiting just inside the door of their truck, to ask an ABC engineer if he needed anything, I learned from a report that
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they were playing back, that a good bit of the caldera was collapsing around the initial crater which was on the east side of the mountain, and Pajarito mountain and Cerro Grande were no more, and while estimates varied, it seemed that Los Alamos was under at least twenty feet of ash and rock. I was heading back into the restaurant with the ABC guy's order, when I heard an odd shushing and moaning sound and then a loud whump! Suddenly there was sand and gravel falling from the sky, our whole area was sprinkled heavily with sand, and gravel-like stones were bouncing around like mad everywhere. I went inside and found that everyone was talking about the mini-van sized boulder that had landed about a half a mile away in the direction of the eruption. Outside, when she heard those odd moaning sounds, and looked back over her shoulder, the local reporter who had been giving her report at the time yelped in surprise and jumped off the riser, hitting the ground running, but her cameraman beat her back to their truck, from the safety of their truck cab they saw that we had only gotten a big shower of debris out of it. It had been very scary, especially for them, but fortunately the cameraman had left his camera on the tripod and rolling, and the footage of that gigantic impact was played back over and over by all of the news networks in the world. When I saw the footage of the impact later, I was glad I had been on the other side of the building, and watching that big chunk of mountain plow into the ground I understood perfectly why they ran, frankly I would have too. That event was the biggest excitement for the evening, except that we could not find any hot sauce spicy enough for the NBC crew. When Mr. Garza was ready to call it a day he called his son and another cook to come and keep the place open while we had our media customers on hand. Then before we left he gave us specific instructions, he said Here is my home phone number, call the restaurant before you come in tomorrow and call me at home if you don't get an answer here. I think if we get any more of those big rocks flying our way the State Police will pull the plug on our little venture, and we will all be safer at home. I am hoping that we can keep on, but we won't buck what the State Police say, OK? OK! we both said, then Mr. Garza paid me in cash for helping out that day. So we dragged ourselves back to Estella's car. It took a while to clean the ash and sand off the windows. On our way back to the shelter, and the trailer, Estella asked Antonio, were you outside when that big thing hit? Yes I was on the opposite side of the building from the impact, but it was still quite an amazing thing. I said.
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She said, Well, we were working away inside, and one of the reporters who had been eating suddenly shouted, Heads Up, Incoming! and we all looked out the window just in time to see the local reporter and cameraman scamper away. Then it was like some kind of heavy storm hit, the building shook and there was a sound like heavy rain mixed with hail. Yes, I said, I was under the overhang on the building and it was very much like a heavy shower, but it was sand and rocks, like the stuff that was on your windshield. Well, this has been quite a day! she said. It certainly has, I said, then we began discussing where we could get some gas and how to find our way back to the shelter. When we got back to the trailer Marta was sitting up waiting to be sure we were safe, and I found Blue asleep next to Anna in one of the beds in the trailer. I would have left him alone, but he was taking up the space where Estella hoped to sleep. A gentle touch brought him up with a sleepy look and a yawn, and we guys made our way back to the bachelor's quarters. About six thirty the next morning, my little alarm went off, but I had to look outside to be sure it was not still night. The cloud from the eruption was spread all over the sky, blocking all but the most determined light from the pre-dawn sun. I clambered out of the back of the truck followed by Blue and found Estella out looking at the ash clouds on the northern horizon. Hmm, she said, What time were you supposed to go in today, Estella? I asked Well, after lunch, but the way things were yesterday I thought we should head in as soon as we could, but boy, it sure looks ropy over there. Hey lets get our morning wash up done and eat breakfast, and call them to see what's going on. I suggested. Alright. I am still a little sleepy, but my worries got the better of me, Mr. Garza is one of the best bosses I've had and I hope they are all OK there. she said.

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Well I hope so too, but remember he said if the State Troopers told them to go, he would. I said hopefully. Yes, I just hope he knows when to give up if it gets bad before the Troopers say so. She said, I'll go get my overnight case. We went in and when we came out of the shower rooms Estella tried to call the restaurant on her cell phone, after several attempts without an answer she called Mr. Garza's home number Hello Mr. Garza, she said It's Estella, I guess that it got too hot for you? So what happened? Mmmmm, Uh-huh, Wow! Hmm, . OK, alright I will check in with you tomorrow. I was all ears when she hung up. Another big boulder came barreling in and hit the highway last night and the Troopers moved the safety zone farther back, so now the restaurant is off limits. We can check in with Mr. Garza tomorrow and go from there. Estella said. Did he say how big the new boulder was? I asked. He said it was bigger than the first one, and this time it actually dug a big hole in the highway. As soon as they heard about it the TV folks packed up, paid their tabs and moved farther away around 4 AM, so when they left, Mr. Garza's son locked up and left too, and gave him the news a little while later. She explained. Well I can't say I am sorry about not being there for the next big boulder. I said. Yeah, Estella said, I never thought I would hear 'work called off because of giant rocks falling from the sky'. Mr. Garza also said that he heard the Bernalillo Police were patrolling the neighborhoods advising people to evacuate over their loudspeakers. Well that does sound bad, So we are cut loose for today then, OK, lets go get your Mom and Anna and have some breakfast, how about it. I suggested. Sure, let's enjoy our enforced time off. Estella said, shaking off her disappointment. So on the way I grabbed a bottle of water for Blue, and we went back to the trailer.
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Marta and Anna were still waking up so I let them have their privacy and went to get Blue set up with some fresh food and water. Blue and I were sitting on the tailgate when the ladies came out of the trailer. Estella came over and sat with me while Marta and Anna went in to take their morning showers. Hey you, how are you guys doing? Estella said, I am going to wait about about thirty minutes for Mama and Anna to wash up and then we can meet them inside and go get something to eat. It sounds good to me, I said, Blue was smelling Estella's arms and hands as if looking for something. Hey Blue, she said and casually threw an arm around his neck. Blue settled down and sort of snuggled up against her leg, he seemed to really enjoy all of the attention he had been getting these last few days. Listen, she began, I was wondering what you thought about Mama's chat yesterday about your dream. We grew up with her ideas and we practice her kind of fellowship with God, so it is nothing new to us, but I was wondering how it struck you. I replied, Well to be honest Estella, she was right about the reason I like being alone, I really do not get much out of the noise and hustle of the city, it is so phony and manipulative, and it grates on my nerves. I really do feel like I am doing something right when I am away from all of that and depending on God to provide each new day with it's challenges. Even though I have not heard Him I have a sense that when I get away from the hectic world's constant input and confusion that I can more clearly think my own thoughts, and I have had the distinct feeling that that is a step closer to hearing His thoughts. Ah, she said, Then you will get a lot out of this method my Mama will teach you, it is very simple, basically it is just a matter of sitting quietly and listening, and writing down what you hear Him saying to you. It is a way of bypassing our natural doubts and simply listening in the most basic uncritical way possible. It's really that simple? I asked. Yes, it is the most simple thing in the world, it is so simple that practically anybody can do it by simply, and humbly seeking God. You see God wants us all to walk with Him, and we don't have to do or be anything special, but just like a relationship with a regular
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person we need to spend time with Him to get to know Him personally. Estella said. But this does have to do with Jesus somehow? I asked. Well, really all access to God is through Jesus, whether we know it or not. That is why it is good to read the gospels and the rest of the Bible, because it reveals the character of God. The kindness of Jesus to the simple, sick and poor is something which has not been stressed in the churches, but it is something which we can hold on to as the way He will receive us when we seek Him. He has thrown open the door to us to approach God. Estella said. You are so completely into this, how come you didn't say anything about this when we had our first long chat? I said. Well Antonio, first of all it is a very personal thing and we are very careful to share as the Lord tells us to. But really, if I had told you all that was on my heart before you knew me better, how could you respond to that? It would be hard to imagine now, but you might have thought that I was just a religious nut, and you would not have taken me seriously. Anyway as it turned out, He provided the time and setting for us to talk about it and though we haven't known each other for very long, we have already been through a lot together, even with Mama and Anna too. Estella said. Yes, well, He is very thorough isn't He? I said. Ah, I think it is about time for us to join Mama and Anna. Estella said looking at her watch. So we opened all the windows just a bit so that it wouldn't be too hot, and put Blue in charge of the truck, he knew exactly what to do, he resumed his guard duties and jumped into the front seat. Then we went in to the shelter, there was quite a hubbub going on for the televisions, which had been set up to relay the news, were reporting the widespread bombardment, by the giant boulders, on all of the areas surrounding the volcano, along with video of the angry looking pool of lava in the new crater. There was a feeling among a lot of the people in the shelter that they would never be able to go home. We got through the breakfast line pretty quick because a lot of people were too upset, by the news, to eat. We found a nice table a little away from the crowd and before we started to eat Marta had us hold hands and she gave thanks that we had all come through this alive and in good health, then she asked us about what had happened last night at the restaurant and why they had closed up for the day.

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Marta said, I know Mr. Garza a little, he is too hard a worker to close up over a little ash falling on his parking lot. So we told her the story of last night. We had been too tired to tell her about it when we got home so we laid it all out, the TV trucks, the reporters eating and filing stories, and the first big boulder falling so far away, and yet way too close. Then when we told her about the new big boulder and how it had sent everyone off to a safer distance. Ah, yes, Marta said, this mountain has long arms, eh? Yes, I said, It seems that as long as the sides of the caldera are collapsing into the pool of lava in the crater, it will randomly shoot big rocks out and rain them down all over the neighborhood. Well, Marta said, We will count our blessings and wait for the Lord to tell us what we can do next. We may never go home to the Pueblo, but I am sure that God has somewhere for us to go and something for us to do. And we are thankful that you have come into our family circle, Antonio, I am happy to know you and I am so glad you were available to whisk us all out when we needed you. I said, Well I am footloose and fancy free now that the season is over and I suspect that this natural disaster is the beginning of a new phase in my life, for if the Santa Fe Forest is under volcanic siege I may not have a job next year, and of course we all have losses and people to mourn, I am afraid there may be many, and there will be choices which have to be made in the days ahead. Estella asked, Well what do you usually do when you get off for the season, Antonio? I often camp at Fenton Lake State Park for a week or two while I fish and check out the local newspapers, you know the Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and sometimes the Taos newspapers, to see if I can find an odd job for the off season. Oh, she said, I guess that's not going to happen now! Yes I suppose that the lake is a sludgy mud hole now with all of the ash which will be falling into it. I said, and I thought of how fine that lake had been for a moment. Marta said, Well we all have to think of what we will be doing if this keeps up, so maybe the best thing will be to ask the Lord about it. Antonio I have brought a blank book for you to journal in, and I brought our own journals too. This is how it works, we
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keep our journals like a diary and put the date and time at the top of the page, then we put down our own initials and pour out whatever is on our hearts, our concerns and our worries, but we don't ask any direct questions of Him. Then we say what would you like to say to me Lord? And write down an initial for Him like J for Jesus or L for Lord, and we listen, writing down whatever we hear. You see Antonio the problem people have now days in hearing God is, that they don't know they can hear Him, so they don't ever listen for Him. They don't really believe that He exists or they think that He doesn't want to speak to them, or they do hear Him, but they over analyze what they hear and render what God told them useless. The world and the flesh will choke out what God shares with us if it can. OK, I said, I follow you pretty well, I just have a few questions. Sure, let's hear them. Marta said. Alright how come we shouldn't ask direct questions? I asked. Antonio did you ever want some thing or maybe a relationship so bad that you could taste it? Marta asked. Oh yeah, especially when I was a kid. There were some Christmas presents that I wanted so bad that I thought I would die if I did not get them. I said. That is the kind of question that is a problem. If you ask Him directly for something that you think you must have then your ego will anxiously step in and answer for God, and of course that is not what we are after. At this point we don't care what we want, we only want to know what He wants to tell us. So we should hang up our petty desires and wants for a little while, and set them aside so that we can hear Him without interference. That sounds sort of tricky. I said. It is simpler than you think, what you are doing is turning off your analyzer for a moment, to hear Him and then turning it back on to be sure that it was from Him. Marta said. Why would we need to turn off our analyzer? I said. The answer to that is in the story you told Estella about your dream, you said that you
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thought that the dream was nothing, that it was a product of your knowing that the mountain is a volcano, and that is the way that we all dismiss things that God sends us every day, and it is because we analyze things by our own experience. But if God is speaking to you that is a new experience, we cannot gauge it by our past experience so we should suspend the little lawyer in our heads for a moment in order to receive the message. So how do we know that the message is from Him? I said. The Lord is kind and loving to us, after all He went to a lot of trouble to reconcile us to Him. He feels about us the way the father did in the story of the prodigal son. So if what you get is condemning or hateful, or demeaning, that is not God, it is an expression of some hidden dark place in your heart or of course it is the devil trying to lead you astray. But this is where reading the Bible comes in, the person you read about in the Gospels is kind and loving to those who humbly seek Him. That is what we are looking for, that is the character of the person we are seeking. He said in John 10 My sheep hear My voice and a little later My sheep know My voice. So as we walk with Him we become more and more familiar with His character and His voice, so we can easily reject the ranting of the devil. Whoa, hearing from the evil one that's a sobering thought! Well Marta, that is the one person who was never welcome around our campfire. I said. Yes Antonio, I can see that in your honest eyes. You will discover that God will instruct you, He will encourage you, He will give you guidance, and correct you. He may simply tell you that He loves you, but He will never condemn you. That was all taken care of by His death on the cross. So now we are free to respond to Him. Marta said. Also I have been journaling for years and when the enemy intrudes on my entries, I can usually detect him very quickly and I tell him to move on, there is only one person I want to hear from, and He is gracious, faithful, and powerful enough that as I wait He will respond to me, and nothing can hold Him back. She added. Alright so I guess we can do this here and now? I asked. Well it might be better to go back to the trailer and get away from the noise and chaos here. She suggested. Whew, I said, Yes, I am not sure I can filter out this level of noise.
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So we picked up and moved to the trailer, Marta and I sat at the little table and Estella and Anna sat at opposite ends of their bed. So, Marta began by handing me a spiral notebook and a Bible, We generally start by reading one of our favorite Psalms or a Scripture that we have found which inspires us. I took the offered Bible and found my favorite from childhood, John 10:14-18 I am the good Shepherd, which I read slowly and thoughtfully. I have always had an inexplicable feeling when I read those words, it almost moves me to tears. It must have helped put me in the right frame of mind to hear Him after the noise and confusion of the shelter, because as soon as I had finished writing down my concerns with the Lord about what we were going to be doing with the whole mountain on fire and all. I asked What would You like to say to me Lord? It is little hard to describe, I heard a voice, but it was not out loud, so I started writing, He told me Antonio, I am so glad to speak to you, I have been with you and Blue out on the mountain side when you were so near to asking me about the things which filled you with wonder, and the quiet joy in your hearts. So now I can tell you how much I love you and want you to know that I will always be at your side, to help you and to see you through the seemingly impossible times which lie ahead. There are things which you will not understand at first, but I will guide you, I have given you these ladies to be your new family and you to them. There are many hard things you will all face in the near future and I mean for you to help each other in My love and power. I will tell you all about what I am doing when you will benefit from the information, and the first bit of information is this. There are many hurting people around you here at the shelter I will bring you into contact with several families whose loss is great and they are needing someone to talk to, I don't need for you to do much more than to just listen and be understanding for the moment, but come to me when you can, sit with Me and I will tell you more. Well I was as surprised as I was pleased, it had never occurred to me that God actually wanted to talk to me. When everyone stopped writing, we discussed what we heard, the girls had gotten somewhat more specific instructions, but I understood that they have been doing this for so much longer than I. But Marta's was the most compelling message, the Lord had told her that he was shaping us as a family to be a tool in His hands to rescue and heal the people around us who were in such desperate straights. And that we would look back at the work He had given us when it was done and wonder at all of the things He had
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accomplished with people who had never before even given Him a second thought. Well this is heady stuff, I had never thought it possible to get assignments from God, but considering the Bible stories I had learned when I was a child, I now understood that God really does call people and speak to them. After His talking about our being a family we were a little shy of each other for a while and then Anna broke the ice by remarking that we weren't getting any ash on the wind and she asked me if she could take Blue for a run. I said, joking, Sure, just don't wear him out too badly. She chuckled and said, Sure thing, thank you, Antonio. When Anna was out of earshot Marta and Estella burst out laughing, and Marta said I am sorry Antonio but you couldn't know, Anna is a long distance runner, and she is really good at it. I am sure she will take pity on Blue when he starts to look tired, but considering everything, I just thought what you said was incredibly funny. Oh, I said, Well I hope she wasn't insulted or anything. I don't think she would take offense Antonio, we tease her about wearing out the boys on the cross country team all of the time. You see she is one of the stars on her school's Cross Country team and she really can run some of the boys into the ground. Oh my, well we'll just have to see how Blue takes to this, he might just like it, I was surprised when he chased a young cougar once for the better part of a morning and he finally treed him, so we'll just see. I said. So when our runners get back what would you like to do? Maybe we could find a place to go for a walk after lunch, maybe a quiet place far from the noise of the shelter. I suggested. We'll see, when the Lord mentions something like helping people sometimes it is in the future and sometimes it is right away, and since there are so many around us who are hurting, and that is what He spoke of, we need to stick around for a while today and be sure we aren't needed. I think we will soon see if Jesus has someone for us to talk to at lunch. I don't want to presume too much Antonio, do you need for us to go ahead and move into the shelter and out of your trailer? Marta asked. Oh no Marta, it is actually pretty darn neat to suddenly have a family, as the Lord put it, I don't know if Estella told you, but I haven't had a family for quite a while now, and
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one thing is for certain I haven't been bored since the volcano blew up. Besides, Blue and I have made a cozy nest for ourselves in the back of the truck, and we are very comfortable there so don't even worry about it. Mi casita es su casita. Bueno, mi hermano. Marta said with a grin and she added, I need to pray about what we just learned, there isn't any reason you two shouldn't go for a walk. OK Mama, I can take a hint, Estella said with a mischievous grin, and she motioned for me to follow her. Estella and I started walking away from the shelter area which was really just a rather large high school which the city in it's wisdom had designated for disaster relief. As we headed for the nearby neighborhood I began to wonder what happened to the high school students when this came about since school had started and had been underway for a couple of weeks. I parked the truck and trailer in a place which was a flat gravelled shoulder space across the street from the high school, as indeed were a number of RVs and trailers of the folks who had been prepared to make a run for it in their recreational vehicles. As we walked down the road we saw that some of the trailers and RVs had pulled onto the dirt road which surrounded the farmer's field across the street from the high school, there were a lot of them, and I was remembering the number of buses which had been steadily dropping off people from the suburbs and various Pueblos in the area. I had to think of how many thousands of people had been displaced by this eruption. The size of the problem and how to take care of all of these people was mind boggling. The idea was humbling, how close I had been to the eruption and even Marta, Anna and their neighbors had been pretty close and God had seen fit to warn us, and keep us safe, I began to think about the people who had been fortunate enough to get out, but who were beginning to feel like they were never going to be able to go home again, and I could not even comprehend the despair felt by the many, many people who could not locate a husband, wife, parent, or child who had been away from home when it happened or who had been evacuated from work and did not know if anyone at home had made it out. Estella noticed my somber expression and she said Penny for your thoughts, Antonio? I said, I just started to think of all of these people around us who have lost family members or lost track of them, and I have to admit I am at a loss to know what to do. Well, Antonio, I think that there isn't anything we can do about it, but as God gives us people to grieve with and console, He will provide the strength we will need. And as we follow what He has for us to do we will find that we can do something, we just couldn't do it without Him. I think that is why we ran into each other, I mean before last July I
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had no idea that you existed and you didn't know me at all. He has been shaping a path for us to follow for quite a while and we have His presence and His love to keep us all together. Estella said, putting her arm through mine. We had been walking east along the sidewalk and talking without paying much attention to our surroundings when I heard a sound that made me look up, Anna and Blue were pounding up the sidewalk towards us at a pretty good clip. I had to chuckle because Anna was hardly winded and I could tell that Blue was beginning to show signs of wanting to stop. Anna stopped and said, I was planning to go down this little dirt canal road to cool down would you like to join me? I have to warn you, I set a pretty fast pace. Looking at Estella, I said, Would you like to? She grinned and nodded and I said Sure, lets go. Anna wasn't kidding, she did set a fairly brisk pace, but Blue looked a little relieved to slow down from running, he kept looking at Anna out of the corner of his eye as he trotted by her side. It dawned on me how quickly Anna had been able to make friends with Blue, you see, Blue isn't very aggressive or mean, but he doesn't usually warm up to people quickly. And now it looked like they were pretty good buddies, and I had to think again of how God had worked things out in so many ways, and here I was walking with the girl I liked best and thinking about what He had told us about helping people, maybe even the ones we would be having lunch with in an hour. I was almost speechless, but I was not so overwhelmed that I did not notice the sparkle in Estella's eyes. When we returned to the trailer Marta was finished with her prayer time, and Anna grabbed a towel and a change of clothes and headed for the shelter to take a shower. As she was leaving she gave Blue an affectionate pat and he looked up at her with love in his eyes. We sat around the little table in the trailer and chatted, we were going to meet Anna inside, in about thirty minutes for lunch. Well, Marta said, Jesus told me that He was sending us someone in particular who is missing their child who was away at school in Santa Fe, and they will be very upset . They have not heard anything from him. He also said that they have a big family, so we will all have someone to talk to, it is too bad that we cannot take Blue into the shelter with us to delight the children. and she gave Blue a little pat herself, and said You're a good boy, Blue!. Blue seemed to be in a mood to appreciate any attention, and he looked back at Marta and smiled in that funny panting way that dogs have.
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So when the time was right we put Blue on guard duty in the truck and went into the shelter. We found Anna, and got in line for lunch, the line was long and there were many discouraged faces in it. So although we were on the lookout for our worried family, we didn't see them until it was time to sit down with our food. They caught my attention because the children, being too young to fully understand the crisis, were mischievous, in glaring contrast to the adults who all looked like they had lost their best friend in the world. So we sat next to them at the long tables, and when we had been sitting and eating for a while Marta started to chat with them. She discovered that they were Elena and Thomas Benevidez from the Kewa pueblo. They told us about how they escaped, when the mountain blew up they had packed their truck in a hurry and left, but there was a very hot cloud of ash which followed them as they sped out of the boundaries of the Pueblo and they despaired for their neighbors who had been struggling to pack up and leave. They said that they managed to hit I-25 just south of the impenetrable ash cloud which had been drifting across the highway obscuring everything in it's path and they had hotfooted it down to Albuquerque, and everyone in the family was with them, except Martin, their son, who was boarding at the Santa Fe Indian School and who chose to stay the weekend because of school functions which were to take place on Saturday. The parents and older children tearfully told us that they had tried to contact him until the batteries on their cell phones had died and the shelter's land lines here were still overloaded. And they dare not ask their neighbors in the shelter to borrow their phones lest they become a nuisance. So when we were through eating Estella and I got extra coffees for the parents, ourselves, and Marta, and we divided our time between talking to the older children and playing with the younger children. One little girl in particular took a shine to me and plopped herself on my lap, then she looked up at me and said Oh, can I sit here, please? I just chuckled and said, Of course you can! I don't think I had ever held anyone so heavy on my lap for so long, Estella was amused at my discomfort and her eyes gleamed merrily at me anytime I moved to shift the child to the other leg. She tried to coax the child onto her lap, but the little girl, Lena was her name, would have none of it, and she stuck to me like glue. Then I remembered that I had charged my cell phone overnight on the truck battery. I was a little embarrassed that I had not thought of it earlier, Estella had already checked her cell phone and her battery was too low. I leaned over and suggested that she tell her Mom that they could use my phone, and then we would go retrieve it. Marta nodded when Estella whispered to her, so I got up and eased my lap passenger to the floor, I have to run an errand now Lena, I said. Oh! Can't I come with you? She said.

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You should ask your parents if you can go with us. I said. She was off like a shot, Momma can I go with Antonio and Estella to go get something? Her mother was somewhat occupied with her discussion with Marta and she said What is it Lena? Can I go with Antonio and Estella to go get something? Lena wheedled. Her Mother looked at us standing and ready to go and she said, Alright Lena but be good and don't pester them too much with questions. OK!, Lena said and the human torpedo was back by our sides. We now felt responsible for looking after this five year old, so we each held one of Lena's hands as we made our way to the truck. Is that your trailer? Are you married? Could my family live here with you too, in the trailer? Lena said with childish indifference to her Mother's directions. Estella noticed that I was fumbling for my keys, so she replied, Yes that is Antonio's trailer, no we are not married right now, and I wish we could all live together in the trailer with your family, but it isn't big enough. Our friendly little inquisitor zeroed in on the concealed piece of information in Estella's reply and said, What do you mean you are not married, right now? Lena looked up at Estella, her big brown eyes shining. Estella crouched down to be on Lena's level as I was opening the truck door and said, Antonio and I like each other a whole lot, maybe even more than a whole lot, but we need to know each other better before we get married and have little ones like you. Estella poked her playfully in the tummy to punctuate the sentence. There was a puzzled look on Lena's face, but she kept her peace for a moment, that is until she saw Blue, Oooh, you have a pretty dog Antonio. She said, she hopped up on the doorsill and gave Blue a hug around his neck. Well, considering that she took him by surprise, I thought Blue handled himself like a perfect gentleman, giving Lena a gentle lick on the cheek while it was near him.

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OK, Lena I need to get in there and get something. I said. I leaned in and caught up the cell phone which had been sitting between Blue's front paws. When she saw it Lena exclaimed, You have a cell phone, oh boy! Maybe we can talk to Martin! I gave Blue an affectionate pat, for the good dog that he was, and closed the door. On the way back Lena was chattering happily about her big brother and what he had been doing at school. Martin plays lacrosse and baseball and he reads these really big books, she looked up at me and said, Antonio, do you read books? I said, Lena I love to read books, I read books all of the time. What kind of books, are they stories, like the storytellers tell? Lean asked. Why yes Lena, I read stories like that and I read other stories too, I read a book the other day about a man who was a sailor and he hunted whales. I said. Really? Whales in the ocean? Lena gasped. Yes and these whales can bite you in half if you are not careful. I added Oh, like killer whales. Lena said. Mmmm, even bigger than killer whales, Lena. About the size of a semi-truck on the highway. I said. Oh, that is very big. Lena said. Of course I was just glad that precocious Lena had not seen any of the movie renditions of Moby Dick. I was delighted with her childish sense of wonder. We all walked hand in hand back across the street and across the parking lot to the shelter. When Lena spotted her family at the table, she broke away and ran to them yelling, Antonio has a phone, Antonio has a phone!
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Thinking back on it I must say it was a unique way to make an entrance. We settled down with Lena's family and I handed over my phone. Elena and Thomas were so upset they asked Marta to pray with them before they used the phone, so we all bowed our heads and I gently shushed Lena who had started to tell her brother something about Blue, and I put my hand on her arm so that she would know that it was serious. Lena quieted down and Marta prayed. Oh Jesus, we ask that You open a connection despite the phone outages and network overload that this disaster has caused. Please help us find Martin. Thank You Lord, Amen. Then they nervously dialed the phone and after a couple of rings they were talking to Martin. Tears were streaming down Elena's face and Thomas hid his face in his hands with joy. Thomas talked to him next, they were speaking to Martin in the Keres dialect of their pueblo, so we had to wait until the phone call was over to find out what they had learned. Elena hung up the phone after saying good-bye and she turned a tear streaked smile to us, she said, Martin was getting ready to catch the Rail Runner to come home when the mountain blew up and the school had a couple of buses which had just returned from some athletic trip or something, well they just started getting the students out of the dorms and loading them onto the buses and they sped off before the first big ash cloud settled over Santa Fe, he said he was looking out the back window of the bus as they left and he saw the few teachers and dorm staff who had been there on Saturday loading the last stragglers into their cars and they quickly followed the buses. He said it was a near thing because no one would have been able to go anywhere when that blinding, choking cloud of ash arrived over the city. At first the bus drivers just headed north on I-25, but after consulting with the State Police they went to Las Vegas and found a shelter that the Red Cross was setting up. He said that he was lucky that he had his bags packed to go home because most of the kids had been hustled onto the bus with just the clothes they were wearing. He said that many of his friends have their phones with them, but they have not been able to get through when they tried to call their families. So he told us that we need to make a list of the families who are here at the shelter, who had kids there at the school, and eventually he thinks they will make a bus trip up beyond the volcano zone and back down to bring the students to their families. So Estella and I volunteered to help take the names of the families that would respond, then Thomas went into the gym, which was the bedroom of so very many people with cots wall to wall. He stood on a table and said, May I have your attention please, we
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have just been talking to our son, on the cell phone, who was at the Santa Fe Indian School on Saturday and he said that he thinks that all of the children who were still there in the dormitories on Saturday were evacuated to Las Vegas. We are going to be taking names of families who are here and had sons or daughters at the school to allow them to send our children here to us. Little shouts of joy accompanied the rustle of people who were drawn out of their sadness. A sadness born of not being able to find out any useful information about their children. I had seven people come to me and give their names and the names of their kids. Estella had nine, and Thomas had five, but then he spent a certain amount of time encouraging and sympathizing with the other parents too. We put the names together on a long list and then we went back to where Marta and Elena were talking at the table. While I was looking over the list an older couple with sad eyes came up and sat down beside me. Excuse me, the man said, I am Ernest Perez, my wife and I have a granddaughter at the Santa Fe Indian School, and we thought she might have stayed over the weekend for a track meet. We were a little afraid to put ourselves on the list at first, but then we haven't been able to contact her mother, who is our daughter, and we talked about it and we think it would be best to at least have her here so that our daughter only has to look one place to find us all. We are from the Namb pueblo and we escaped because we were visiting friends at the Sandia pueblo at the time, afterwards we were on our way home when we saw the big ash cloud and then we ran into a roadblock, so we ended up here. Alright, I said, Ernest Perez and your wife's name is? Adelita Perez, he said OK, now your granddaughter's name? I asked. Madalena Kaskalla. he said. And do you have a cell phone number so Madalena can call you if she needs to? No we don't, Ernest said. There now we have added you to our complete list, and by the way my name is Antonio de Paquim. I said shaking Ernest's hand.

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Ernest, I just thought of something, do you have Madalena's cell phone number? I asked. Why yes we do, Ernest said and for the first time, since meeting them, I saw both of them smile as they realized what we would soon be trying to do with that number. Alright when Marta is finished reading the list to Martin, he is the boy we are in contact with, then we can try to call Madalena. Martin told us that many of the students have their cell phones with them, so we can give it a try. I said. I handed the complete list over to Marta who was going to read the list to Martin, then I turned to Thomas. Thomas, what kind of cell phone do you have? Maybe if it is the same as mine I could charge it in my truck. I suggested. Thomas promptly handed over his phone and it was the same make and model as mine so I was able to tell him that we could charge it a little later and that it would be ready to use tomorrow. So we sat in suspense as Marta dialed Martin's number again and after a couple of rings we were off and running, Marta read the list of the parents and children, with Martin on the other side of the phone carefully writing them down. When they were done with the list Elena spoke to him and then Thomas who said that they would have their phone back in order tomorrow and maybe they could talk longer. The change in Thomas and Elena was amazing after their despair, they laughed and joked with their children, and with us too, it was very encouraging. So then I retrieved the phone from them and I asked Ernest for Madalena's phone number, as I punched in the number, I tried to reassure Ernest and Adelita that if she had her phone we might be able to get through, since we could talk to Martin. The phone was ringing and I handed it to Ernest, he cupped it in his hands like something precious, then he heard his granddaughter's voice and his face lit up. He spoke to her in Spanish so I could understand what they were saying, then I had a pang of conscience because I realized that I was eavesdropping in my anxiety to discover that everything was alright, I got up and went to see what Estella was up to. From an appropriate distance I saw that Adelita had taken up the phone and was having an animated and happy chat with her granddaughter. After a little while I realized that they had said good-bye and were trying to figure out how to hang the phone up. Ernest was so excited he started to explain what they had learned in Spanish and then he
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stopped and apologized, I said quickly, Esto no es una problema Ernest, diga me! So he smiled and told me that Madalena was indeed one of the girls who had been on the track team field trip and the buses had just dropped the students off at the school after the event, and refilled their gas tanks when the volcano blew up. The drivers were getting ready to lock up the buses when they heard that awful rumbling, and saw the cloud of ash rising in the distance. So the bus drivers watched it for a minute and noticed that the ash cloud was heading straight for Santa Fe, then they sprang into action they jumped back in the buses and took them right around to parking lots on each side of the dormitories of the school ready to pick up everyone they could, and they raised the alarm. The dorm staff people started getting people out of their dorm rooms and checking the bathrooms and showers, for stragglers. When the buses were quite full they took off, heading for the Interstate. And then to Las Vegas where Madalena says that she is safe and being taken care of, but she misses us and her parents and she is worried because she hasn't been able to get her parents on the phone. So he told her about the list and she said that since she can't find out where her parents are she will come to where we are. Wow Ernest, it is a good thing that those buses were all gassed up and ready to take off. I said. I think it is God, Ernest said calmly with his eyes shining, And He will make sure that Madalena will get to us safely. Well then, I said, Thank God she is safe and will be on her way to you before too long. Yes, Ernest said, We are very thankful, now we need to pray for our daughter for she was at home at Namb and we don't know if anyone made their escape from the pueblo or what. We haven't heard anything about it at all. Ernest I will pray about it too, I know that many people had to flee and I am worried about how many did not make it. I said. By the way where will I find you if we get some more information which we should share. We got here early so we pegged out our space over in the corner over there, Ernest said indicating the southwest corner. If I hear anything further about when they will be bussing the children over I will come find you and tell you. I said.

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I shouldn't have worried about finding Ernest and Adelita or the Benevidez family either because any time over the next few days that there was a meal time or just a period when we were all in the shelter at the same time we tended to gravitate to one another, I kept Thomas' cell phone charged and soon the Benevidezes and the Perezes were carrying on regular communications with their children, it is sad to say though that Madalena told her Grandparents that she contacted the Red Cross shelter in Taos and there was no trace of her mother and father there, we were all pretty sad about that. On a brighter note Anna and Blue were running just about every day when the ash wasn't being blown in our direction by the wind, and Blue was getting in shape, at least he didn't look quite so pooped when they came in from one of their many runs. The news from the volcano was not good, the crater was still expanding and the boulders were still raining down on the surrounding pueblos and towns, I saw a satellite picture on the TV taken on a day when the wind was strong enough to blow the ash clouds aside and instead of the familiar big irregular circle of the caldera it looked more like a figure eight with the new crater forming a smaller bottom circle. And the huge plume of ash blowing eastward on the high level winds became a fixture of the northern sky for us. Estella was eager to work and called Mr. Garza every day, but the reports were not encouraging, there were still car and refrigerator sized boulders falling just a bit too near the restaurant to allow for normal business. Mr Garza tried to sound hopeful, but Estella could tell that if he had to stay closed much longer it would put him out of business. She wasn't very happy about that and I felt sorry for him, his restaurant had been such a nice place to spend a relaxing afternoon in. After meals Ernest, Thomas, Thomas' two older boys and I often spent the time chatting about what we had been doing before the eruption, and what we hoped to do soon. We often talked about things we had done and missed and Thomas told us about the time he had been deployed in Iraq and before his time was up he had helped out during Katrina with his National Guard unit. One afternoon when we were together chatting, my phone rang and we got the call we had been waiting for, Martin had been busy, he had tracked down as many parents as he could in the shelters all around the volcano zone and found the students whose pueblos were not in the danger zone so that they could go home too. The bus drivers were having a conference with the school officials that they were able to find. It looked like it would not be too long before they could make the trip, dropping off students at each shelter or pueblo along the way, while traveling in a big circle around the volcano. This was great news of course each of us had been hearing the many sad stories of the people around us, and how they could not find their loved ones, and now we would have some good news to give at least some of the people. Their children would be coming to be with them soon!

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When he hung up the phone Thomas was bursting with the news. He stood on the table again and gave whoever was in the shelter an update and there were subdued cheers and some laughter around the place. We were altogether rather pleased with ourselves, when Estella came and took my hand, she had an odd look on her face and she took me to the nearest television where as you might expect the news was on non-stop. The anchor was announcing a great deal of activity at the crater, the south sides of the rim had suddenly collapsed and tremendous explosions were throwing a great deal of rock and lava high into the sky. It was so sudden that a helicopter full of volcanologists, who were checking out the south rim during what they thought was a lull in the volcano's activity, had been caught in the blast. I could not stand to watch the footage they showed over and over. I was feeling so helpless for those men and women in the chopper, which was flipping end over end like a toy thrown by an angry child. The south slope of the mountains were pretty much uninhabited, but then suddenly at the bottom of the slope, nearer to the river, there was quite a cluster of pueblos which were evacuated or at least I hoped that everyone was long gone because the anchor then started showing a chart of the pyroclastic flows they had been able to map using infrared imaging from a satellite. And not only did the fiery tides roll indiscriminately across the pueblos, but they were headed straight for Bernalillo, and they seemed to accelerate as they came down the slopes. To keep boredom at bay, whenever I was sheepherding I had collected a bunch of old National Geographics from salvage stores, to read during the long summer days, and the article that had grabbed my attention most was the one about Pompeii and Herculaneum. The articles mentioned that now the archaeologists thought that the majority of bodies they had found in Pompeii had died not from toxic gases as previously thought but they had been killed by the sudden hot blast of a pyroclastic flow. I could not believe that this same kind of thing was being played out just a matter of miles north of us. Estella was crying for the people she knew in Bernalillo and Rio Rancho, because we had no way of knowing who had been evacuated and who had stayed behind. She said quietly to me, Mr. Garza used to complain about how far he had to drive to get to the restaurant, I am so glad he never found a house closer to the restaurant, he still lives in Albuquerque. I held her in my arms and she told me that the day cook lived in Bernalillo and so many of the people whom she had worked with over the past couple of years, and so many of her regular customers lived there. We stood there quietly for a while stunned by the scenes which were being played again and again on the screen, finally we could take no more and we went to find Marta and Anna. When we got to the trailer, Marta saw the look on our faces and she knew instantly that
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something serious had happened, Anna and Blue jumped up immediately and surrounded us in their concern. We told Marta what happened and Marta reminded us that many of the people had voluntarily evacuated, when the Police were advising them to and hopefully there weren't that many people left in town. I sure hope those Troopers and Policemen got out of there pronto, I said remembering some tired fellows in uniform whom I had served coffee to on the day when I was at the restaurant. Marta said, One thing Bernalillo has, is lots of ways to get out of town, If they get the order to take off all they have to do is get on I-25, 313 or 528 and drive south like crazy. I just hope they have been guarding a ghost town, and all they have to do is run like a scalded cat. Whew, Estella said, I am hoping that there are not too many more surprises here, this eruption has already made most of the pueblos in the Rio Grande valley uninhabitable at least for some time to come , we don't even know what our home looks like now. And I guess Santa Fe is pretty much buried and being the capital that will set us all back a bit. The last I heard Santa Fe is under twelve feet of ash. I offered. Alright, Marta said, My dear children. and she winked at me as she said this, we must rest in the Lord's love and provision, He has gotten us out safely and He will get others out who we have not been able to locate. I am certain He has a purpose for this disaster and we can certainly afford to wait to learn our parts with patience, He will bring us opportunities to help, and care for others. Then she sat down at the table and held out her hands to her daughters who in turn each took one of my hands as we sat down. Lord, we don't know how this will all turn out and You have seen fit to only let us know a little at a time, but we know that You alone are trustworthy, and we can rest on that fact, Amen. Marta prayed. Jesus I want to ask you to look after the people I work with and get them out of the dangerous area, thank you Lord. Estella prayed. Lord I would like to ask you to get those students from the Santa Fe school here safely their families are so worried and they just want to hold their children in their arms again. Anna prayed.

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I prayed, Lord please bring Ernest and Adelita's daughter to them safe and sound, they are so worried Lord, it would help them to feel Your presence, please give them strength and hope. After a period of silence to allow us to express silently the things we hadn't spoken. Marta said, Alright, we could all journal if you feel like it, together or separately. And then we need to go in to supper and offer what solace we are able to our new friends. I was beginning to learn that in Spiritual matters Marta was usually right. So I got my journal, went to the back of my truck, and sat on my bed and wrote down all of the things which had been flitting through my mind the last couple of days, how my heart ached with a sense of loss for all of those around me at the shelter and how many similar stories there must be at each shelter around the state. And yet there had been no time to fully consider the pain which I was feeling and how I could not easily suppress those feelings much longer. So I wrote What would you like to say to me Lord? And this is what He told me. Antonio, I am changing the world around you with this simple difference I am bringing the pride of the country you live in down to the dust. Many things will be effected by this disaster, things which you are not privy to, secrets of your government which would have provoked massive destruction in the world. I have taken the sword out of their hands and broken it. In the days to come there will be dark times when the poor will be pushed into the gutter and the rich will be free to enslave whoever they will, I will allow them to have a few days in the sun to draw them into a trap. Then I will take them down. The full depravity of the country started at their doorsteps, the tools to maim and destroy originated in their laboratories. You will see that much of what I have begun will be finished by the greed and desire for power that these proud people have, they will destroy themselves. There are many terrible things which will be averted when they are brought down. You must be patient, but it will surely happen. I will protect my people, those who walk with Me, and I will bring you and your new family through this without a scratch. I have many wonderful things for you, and Estella to do together and with all of your family. I will move in ways you would never expect Me to. I will add the least likely people to your group. I will bring you all to a place where you can be at peace with your neighbors and each other. You are meeting with the members of your family tonight, these men and women and children are your brothers and sisters. When the world presents you with a challenge you will all meet it together in My strength. You will see how I have prepared each one of you for the challenges you will face. And you will also see how I have gifted each of you to have a part in My plans for you. Come to me in the morning after you have talked to Marta. So I thought 'OK, that will be easy to do'. So I joined Estella, Anna, and Marta and we
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went in to the shelter to have supper. When we arrived I was surprised to see a man in a Bernalillo police uniform join the supper line behind me, and then I recognized him as one of the men I had waited on. Hello Officer, I said, I bet you had to hot foot it out of town, but I sure am glad to see that you made it. Hello, he said, Antonio isn't it? Yeah, I like to notice people's name tags. Yes, we had to run like all get out, but last I heard on my radio all of the mobile units and the dispatcher made it out. And I even got my family out earlier, they are here with me, but they are in the bathroom right now. I hope nobody minds if I hold a place in line for them. Oh no, I said, Most of these folks are pretty laid back. Well, Officer what did you see as you were leaving, town? Were there many fireworks? Hey listen you don't have to call me Officer any more, I am not even sure that there is a Bernalillo to be an officer for anymore, so just call me Ben, Ben Aguilar. He offered his hand to me to shake. And to answer your question, I saw some fiery stuff in my rear view mirror, but I was too busy breaking the sound barrier to notice much else. I said, Oh yeah I know what you mean I was on the mountain last Saturday when it blew, and I want to tell you that both my dog's and my ears were blowing straight back with the speed we were doing. Hmmm, where were you then? Ben asked. I was on 126 just before it hits 4 and I am glad to report that my old truck and trailer were equal to the task. I said. Man! You were mighty close to the furnace weren't you? Ben said. Yes I was, and I stopped in Jemez Pueblo to pick up some friends, and it was a hair raising ride even after that. I added. Well now it is my turn, I am glad you made it too. He said and patted me on the shoulder. Estella was in front of me in line and she had overheard some of this conversation. She looked back and she said, Ben, why of course it's you! Ah, so you've come to join our
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little party at the shelter. Why hello Estella, yes the volcano sent us an invitation we couldn't refuse. He said. Then a beautiful brunette woman with a cute little girl walked up to Ben, and he said Antonio, Estella I would like you to meet Marlita my wife, and Anita our daughter. I said, Hello, I am Antonio, and this is Estella. I shook hands with Marlita and then addressing myself to the little one I said I know someone here who is just about your age, but we haven't seen her yet this afternoon. Anita only looked at me with her big brown eyes, she was shy, and clung to her mother's leg. Just then we heard a cry Antonio! and of course who should we see running towards us, but Lena. Ah, here she is Anita. Lena came right up to me and grabbed my hand. Lena, I said, this is Anita and she and her Mom and Dad are staying here too. Hello Anita Lena said with an elfin smile. Anita just stared wide-eyed at Lena, and snuggled a little closer to her Mom.. Lena, Anita's father is a policeman and he just got here a little while ago. I said. Oh, I knew it was a policeman uniform. My Daddy used to wear a National guard uniform. How come you came here Mr. Policeman? Lena asked Ben bent down to Lena and said Well Lena why don't you call me Ben. I came here because the volcano chased me and the other policemen in Bernalillo out. It chased you? Lena said wide-eyed. Well it might as well have, it was throwing stuff at us and we had to go. Ben said. Oh that sounds scary, Lena said. It was, Ben said, but I am glad to say that we all got out OK, and I am glad to meet you.

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Were there any people left in Bernalillo?Lena asked. I hope not, we think everybody was already leaving when the volcano started throwing really big rocks at the town, on Monday, and we were going around telling people they should leave on our loudspeakers. But here in New Mexico people don't have to leave if they don't want to. Ben said with a sad look in his eyes. I could tell that it gnawed at him to think that very many had not left when they were advised to. Lena seemed to sense this too and she asked Do you have your police car here with you? Yes I do, Ben said, It is really tired out though, after the way I had to drive it to get away. Oh, Lena said. I could see the wheels turning in her head but she stayed quiet for a while thinking about what Ben had said and she stood there holding my hand and occasionally looking at Anita. I also noticed the wisps of anxiety slowly easing in Marlita's smiling face, and I am certain that she was preparing herself for the worst when she heard about what the volcano was doing and then Ben came walking through the door, just as big as life. Ben, I said, we have a pretty good table of folks, that we have been eating with, we are all pretty friendly. Lena's folks are among 'em, and we have some good chats after our meals. You are welcome to join us if you like. Ben looked at Marlita and she nodded and gave us a little smile and said, thank you. Estella moved behind me in line to talk to Marlita and I heard her say, I am so glad to finally meet you, I have served many hot cups of coffee to your husband over the years, and sometimes you wonder what a man's family is like. I guess we are like anyone else, we had a nice little house on the south side and we were really happy there, but here and now, I don't know, we are all far from home and wondering what's next . Marlita said. Ha, you will find that you are among friends here Marlita and wait 'til you meet my Mom she adopts everyone. Then Estella caught Anita's eye and interrupted her from
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staring warily at Lena, she knelt down to Anita's level and said, Hello, Anita, I am Estella and I have been hoping to find a friend just your size, you see Antonio has Lena for a friend and I don't have anyone as nice and pretty as you are for a friend. I don't know how she did it, but the ice cracked and Anita smiled at Estella, gave her a shy hug, and said I'll be your friend Estella. Ben and I looked at each other and shrugged and smiled. So Estella, stood holding Anita's hand and talking to Marlita who was getting into the conversation more and more as they found that they had a number of things in common. Estella would pause on occasion and ask Anita something to keep her in the conversation. Eventually we made it through the line and sat down with the Benevidezes and Perezes and we introduced Ben, Marlita and Anita all around. Marta caught my eye and gave me a smile which I did not understand at first, and then I remembered what the Lord had told me about our family, and I nodded at her and smiled back. I started the blessing and I thanked God that Ben had made it safely to his family and was here with us. Marta asked a blessing on the time we would be spending here, and Ernest asked the Lord to bring the children to us soon. We chatted as we ate and then the men and women gravitated to opposite ends of the table when the meal was over and we talked about various things we had in common Ben asked Thomas about his time in the National Guard and then said he had been in the Guard until about five years ago. I could tell that they would be spending hours in the future reminiscing about the various places they had been and seen. Then out of the blue Ben asked Ernest about the children he had prayed for. So Ernest and Thomas told him the story of how the children ended up in Las Vegas and that the bus drivers were trying to arrange a trip to bring as many of the students back to their families as possible. They are planning on making the big circle around to Taos and then come on down here and pick up and drop off people as they go. Thomas said. Well at least for the time being they can forget about using 550 to get here. Ben observed. We haven't gotten a confirmation of when they are going to start yet and no one has mentioned the route just yet, I just assumed that they would take 64 as far as they could and then take 371 or whatever south to meet I-40 and come back here. I said.
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Ben grimaced and said Yeah, not the most efficient route, but I don't think they can be very choosey. Then as if all of our thoughts turned in their direction had a kind of influence, my phone rang and it was Madalena, for Ernest, and Adelita. She was so excited I could hear her talking to them from across the table. They were leaving tomorrow. But they weren't sure how long it would take, they figured they would be in Taos tomorrow, but with so many people in that relatively small town they weren't sure there was anywhere to stay so as many of the students as possible were planning on sleeping in the bus. It wasn't a perfect or comfortable plan but it was what they had to go on with. She told her grandparents that she had still not heard anything from her Mother or Father. It was a bittersweet moment for Ernest and Adelita, but they were smiling nonetheless when they handed me the phone to hang up. Thomas' phone rang a little bit later, Martin had been alerting everyone on his list that they were going to take off in the morning and he wanted to bring his Dad up to date before he collapsed for the night. So we were all in quite a state when Thomas hung up. Thomas face shone with pride in his son for helping to get this off the ground, as he told us about the plan. Martin had the master list of the parents they would pick up in Taos, and he had been double checking the extra people in Las Vegas who would be riding with them to join family in Taos or here. Thomas had written down all of the names of the non-students who were coming. So this would be more than just bringing the students to their families Martin was trying to help as many families get back together as he could as long as they were making the trip anyway. So Martin's hard work galvanized us, Thomas got back up on the table and called out the news and the extra names of the people he had written down who would be coming with the students on the buses. A small riot of joy broke out, and a lady I had never seen before came up and squeezed the dickens out of Thomas. It sounds a little crazy, but in actuality it was fun. After a while we retired to our table and Ben was laughing and smiling about the joy and relief he saw in so many faces, and I know he needed something to smile about. Now that we knew the plan, there was nothing we could do except wait for further word. After the glow wore off we said good night and Marta, Anna, and Estella joined me on our way back to the trailer. Blue was very happy to see us, and he sat down between me and Anna, content for the moment to have us close. We chatted about the events of the day and after a suitable amount of time, I stood up and got Blue to tear himself away
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from Anna's sweet caresses and we headed out to our bed in the back of the truck, Estella came with me and we sat on the tailgate for a little while, with the volcano making it's periodic artillery barrage noises in the distance, it was kind of romantic if you didn't think of all the destruction that was going on. Anyway we sat and held hands for a little while talking quietly, I could tell she was really tired, so I said we should say good night and get some rest. So we kissed gently to remember the moment and she went into the trailer, and after she was inside I could hear everyone laughing in the trailer and I knew Marta and Anna were gently teasing her. I was just glad we had a warm relationship to reflect on while the world was coming unhinged around us, and I was thankful again for the umpteenth time that day that God had seen fit to bring us together and to add to our family and use us to help people, but I didn't know the half of it. Late that night as Blue snuggled up to me for warmth, I had another dream, in this dream I was with Thomas, Roberto, Thomas Jr., Ernest and Ben and we were in the shelter and we were facing down a horde of hostile guys with rifles, we edged as a group out the side door and scrambled into our vehicles and headed south and as we got clear the sky brightened and new vistas opened up and suddenly Estella was next to me in the passenger seat smiling and we were singing as we drove merrily along in the sunshine, and then everybody pulled off the highway and I recognized the place where we were. It was Percha Dam State Park, I had been fishing there many times before, and we set up camp, we had some tents, and we were fishing and having a great time. Then a man came and talked to us and we went with him to a place, a ranch, which had mountains in the background. Then I woke up and Blue was making odd noises, he was having one of those funny dog mares where he was chasing cougars or something in his sleep. So having learned my lesson I sat up, turned on my lantern and I wrote down the particulars of the dream in my journal, and when I was done I could relax and sleep 'til morning. When I got up at 6:30 there were much heavier ash clouds hanging on the horizon, every detail was obscured by ash and I had a sneaking feeling that it was coming our way. Estella came out the door of the trailer , walked around and looked north, she turned around arched her eyebrows and said Yikes! Yeah, I said Double yikes. We got our toiletries and clothes together and went to take a nice hot shower. We had learned that there were a lot fewer people who got up early at the shelter than later, so the lines were shorter and the water was hotter. Estella and I held hands on the way to the shelter and I felt as swoony as a twelve year old. Yup, I was really smitten, I even felt a little dizzy when she noticed me looking at her and broke into a big smile. Ah love!

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Some of the guys in line for the shower had been watching the news and they told me that Bernalillo had heavy ash falling all night and the news guys said it was under about eight feet of ash. What about Rio Rancho, I asked. The northern part of Rio Rancho too. They said. 'Man! Shades of Pompeii!' I thought. I sincerely hoped that everyone and every thing had gotten out of there, the town which had been such a delight for me and a hub of commerce for four centuries was quickly turning into a slag heap! The shower was just what I needed I felt refreshed when I rejoined Estella, we were walking towards the trailer and I told her I had another dream last night. Really, She said. Tell me about it. So I did and she said, OK, this is what will happen when you tell Mama about this, she is going to teach you to journal your dreams, like she taught us to. Journal my dream? I hadn't thought about that. I guess you could do that, does it work for you Estella? I asked. Sure, I do it all the time, and because of it, one day I will be as intuitive as Mama is and help other people with their dreams. Estella said. OK, I can do that, in fact I look forward to doing it! I said and I tried to look confident. Estella laughed and said, Alright, you do it! and she looked at me with a teasing grin. We arrived at the trailer and after Estella checked to see if Marta and Anna were up, we went in because everyone was up and dressed and Anna had even brought Blue in and was fussing over him. Of course Blue was eating up all the attention he could get. I plopped down at the little table in the trailer and said, Marta I have had another dream. Oh? She said and she leaned over and looked into my face, Are you hungry?
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Why yes, I am I said not quite knowing what would follow. I am hungry too, we should go eat, then we will journal the dream, I suppose you wrote it down? She asked. Why yes I thought it best. I said. Good, we will get on it when we return from breakfast. I am afraid I can be a bit grouchy when I am hungry, and it may not do your concentration any good to try to journal when your stomach is growling. I chuckled to myself to think that my teacher was so utterly practical. So we put Blue in the truck and went on into the shelter to eat. The Perezes joined us in line and they had encouraging news, Madalena had called early (I had left my phone with Ernest just for this possibility) and they were on the way. She apologized for getting them up so early, but she was afraid that when they left the interstate that there would be no cell phone coverage. She has always been a sweet and considerate girl, Ernest said smiling. I am glad our plan worked. It would have been awkward if she had called only to hear my sleepy voice on the other end. I said and Ernest grinned and nodded. We got our trays and found that the Benevidezes had already staked out a table, and they had gotten a similar report to Madalena's from Martin. I looked around for Ben and I asked Ernest if he had seen him, Ernest told me that Ben had been yawning and stretching last time he saw him, and should be along soon. And after a little while we heard Ben's friendly voice, Hey do you have just a little bit more room? he said. Sure, we all said and made a teasing show of scooting down, when it was obvious there was already plenty of room. Ben sat next to Thomas, and Marlita and Anita, same along shortly after, Ben hopped up to pull their chairs out for them.
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Estella looked at Marlita and Anita and expressed mock surprise at seeing them and she said, Good morning Sunshine! And to my surprise she jumped up from beside me with her tray and went around the table to sit by Anita. Anita was obviously pleased at this show of friendship and giggled her delight. I was basking in the glow of the two as they sat across the table from me. Estella saw that I was watching this happy interaction, and she said to Anita in a stage whisper, Isn't Antonio handsome? To which Anita grinned and nodded her agreement. So not to be outdone Lena plopped down in Estella's newly vacant seat. And said, Good morning Antonio! Why good morning Lena, I replied. I just had to smile, even in the middle of a huge calamity the Lord had given us this oasis of cheerful mirth. I overheard something Ben was telling Thomas, it had come out rather quickly that Thomas had been a communications specialist in the Army and after that in the National Guard. So Ben was asking him what they (the Guard) would have done about communications if they had to fall back from a more or less permanent position, then he apologized and said, Thomas you have to forgive me for my ignorance, but I was a ground pounder, and all we ever did was constantly move, so this business of losing a permanent dispatch office has me a bit confused. Thomas said, Well I guess that depends on just how permanent everybody thought the situation would be, 'course in the Guard nothing is counted as permanent we were always moving too. So I would guess that they would try to set up some kind of dispatcher out here, wherever they landed, even if it is just to tie up loose ends. Did they have a mobile dispatch car? You know I have heard that designation, but I have a feeling that it was just a car that was out of service, so I am not sure what they actually had when they split, and the dispatcher went dead when she lit out. Ben answered. Then Ben shook his head and added, Thomas we have had lots of disaster drills and we scored pretty well on them too. But I am not sure that anybody ever seriously thought
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we would really have to pull the plug and run the way we did. Well anyway I am going out after breakfast to see if I can raise anyone on the radio. Would you like to come with me? Sure maybe I can help, or just give moral support if nothing else. Thomas said. They finished their breakfast and after each man told his wife what he was up to, they went out to Ben's Police car. Meanwhile Lena was trying to get Anita to come play and while Anita was a lot more receptive than she had been yesterday she still didn't want to leave her Mama's side. They did however talk across the table and I thought that was progress. Marta caught my attention and motioned with her head and eyes that we should go. 'That's right,' I thought, 'I still have a dream to journal.' So off we went with Estella remaining to talk to Marlita, and Anita. Anna followed us, when she caught up with us she asked. Antonio, do you think there is too much ash in the air for me to run? Well Anna I don't want to disappoint you, but the horizon away from the volcano looks awful dusty and hazy, I don't think you should do anything strenuous without a filter mask, even when it looks pretty clear here. I replied. Yeah, that's what I thought too, I just wanted another opinion, I can't breathe well enough with a mask on to run, so I guess I'll just have to wait. She said. I unlocked the camper top and she put down the tailgate and sat with Blue, looking a little dejected. Blue sensed her mood and pushed his head under her arm. Anna chuckled as she said Hello Blue, you are such a good boy. So I retrieved my journal from the truck and Marta and I went in and sat down in the trailer. I recounted the dream to Marta and then she gave me these instructions. So you already have your dream written down, now write at the end of it What would you like to tell me about this dream, Lord? Then you proceed as you would when you are journaling. There is no great secret to this except that over the years you may become more familiar with the symbolic imagery of dreams, but when God sends you a dream, only He knows exactly what it means. So it is best to ask Him. She said. I just have to ask? It is really just that simple? I said.

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Yes Antonio, He has hidden these things from the wise and clever, yet He has revealed them to the poor and childlike. It does not take years of education or a high sounding title to hear Him and understand what He is doing in your life, otherwise we would all be hopeless. But He did come to the poor and the poor in spirit, and we only have to resort to Him in our hearts and in our spirits. It is when we become united to His Spirit that we begin to function as He intended, and if His Spirit dwells within you then you can talk to Him and hear Him just as you would talk to anyone else. Marta said. Wow, I remember in the parish school I attended, the nuns and priests taught us that only great saints and priests could talk to God and be heard, and hear Him speak. I said. Yes Antonio, that is the gist of the Roman Catholic teaching, but you have to remember who was teaching this to you, it was the ones who have been educated and think themselves wise, and who wish to maintain their authority over you. What I have found is that those who fancy themselves wise perpetuate a myth that you cannot reach God on your own, but you must ask them to represent you to God, they want to be your priests, and stand between you and God. But what I am telling you, and the Bible is quite clear on this, is that Jesus is your priest. It is also clear that the wise, people who are just like the pharisees, do not know what they are talking about because the things of God are hidden from them. Marta said. So it would be better to be a Protestant? I asked No, Antonio, it is better to know Jesus. The Protestants have their own form of asserting their authority over people, it is better to go with the simplest and the best, and that is Jesus. Walking with Him and listening to Him all of your days. She said. And dreams are part of this? I asked. Yes I think that every dream I have seen mentioned in the Bible was from God, from Joseph in Genesis to Paul in Acts, they are all from God. OK, then I will journal this one. and I turned my thoughts to the dream, I read it through and then I wrote 'what would you like to tell me about this dream, Lord?' I waited a bit and I heard Antonio, this dream is one for your safety, your government is going crazy and carrying people off to camps in the face of this disaster, I am making a way for you all to escape this situation. When you hear your new family discussing people being sent to camps, tell them about this dream and tell them that they should go south on I-25 to Percha Dam State Park. You can get the tents and whatever you need to camp out on the way, but go there and wait and I will send the man in the dream, from
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the ranch, to you. I looked up and Marta had written something and was waiting for me. So I read her what He had told me, and she said What I have is much the same except that He emphasized that there would be a particular sign to tell you when to talk about the dream. The children will deliver that sign to us, and because of other factors everyone will understand. I sighed, Man! This stuff is serious! Yes, Marta said, We live in odd times, but this is the push that many people will need for them to seek God. Yes, He certainly has my attention. I said. I know we are all going to work as much and as fast as He wants us to, but we must do what He tells us to do because anything we do on our own will be for nothing. Marta said. So what do we do now? I asked. We will wait, He will make it clear and if you don't catch the cue I will prompt you. Don't worry Antonio, this will go smoothly you will see. Marta said. I was a little amazed and even a bit embarrassed to talk about leaving the shelter on the basis of a dream I had. So I asked Marta, Won't they think I am crazy if I tell them we should leave town, because I had this dream? Well Antonio, you will see how it is, it is like a puzzle, the situation will come up and the Lord will prepare the way and suddenly it will make a lot of sense to tell them about it and the pieces of the puzzle will fit nicely together, when an hour before you had no idea of it ever working. Marta explained. This is a lot to take in, is this what it is like for you and the girls all the time? I asked. Yes it is, but you have to understand that what we have been experiencing is something He has been preparing us for, for quite some time. When Estella came home and told us about you, I had an idea that you two met through God's purposes, but when she told me about your dream and I journaled it I suddenly knew this was something very different, because as I told you he had warned me earlier, so I urged the girls to keep their most
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irreplaceable items, and some clothing packed, so we would be able to move on a moments notice, and then He brought us out with your help. She said. So it was no coincidence that Estella and I met and liked each other. I said trying to organize this in my thoughts. No coincidence at all, He had you in mind for this before you were even born. Even Blue being your dog and being your companion and help is something He was involved in. Marta said. Suddenly, I felt a little buzz in my head. And it sank in, Jesus was with me all of the time and He had a number of special tasks for me which I found to be quite reasonable and natural to do. And these were the things which He did before I even knew that I could cooperate with Him. I see a measure of recognition in your eyes Antonio. Marta said. Yes Marta it is as if the lights just came on. And things which I have pondered for some time without understanding them are suddenly making sense. I said. Yes that is it exactly, and that is how it will be when you tell them about the dream too. she said. Alright, so I feel a little funny, should we go back and sit with the people while I cannot yet tell them my secret. I said. Just do what comes naturally, sit with Estella or play with the children or whatever you like. Sometimes you will find that you just have to wait until the time is right to do something He has told you to do. Marta said. You don't mind that Estella and I like each other do you? I said sheepishly. Heavens no Antonio, I always knew that Estella would wait until she found the right guy and you two have to work out between you if that is how it will be. I trust her judgement and as far as I am concerned you might understand that I see you as a Godsend. She said. I breathed a sigh of relief, I couldn't help sometimes feeling like a teenager picking up his date for the Prom whenever Estella and I exchanged an affectionate glance in Marta's presence. Thank you Marta, I have never been completely at ease around the parent of
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a girl I liked. I admitted. Well you do not need to feel uneasy around me, after all I like you mucho! Marta said. Alright! Should we go find out what's going on with the others? I suggested. Sure let's go, but listen Antonio, you might want to set aside some time and journal tonight to let Him reassure you about what He is doing, and you might want to discuss your journal with me from time to time. I still have some things to tell you about it. Marta said. OK, I'll bear that in mind and I will spend some time with Him, later on. I said. We left the trailer and I put Blue on guard duty in the truck and Anna reluctantly went into the shelter with us. We found Estella in the middle of peace negotiations between Anita and Lena, or should I say that she was encouraging Anita, as Anita became more familiar with the more rambunctious Lena. I am happy to report that the two girls were already playing one of those fast hand clapping games that little girls like, even though Anita was sitting in Estella's lap to do it. Marlita was having a serious looking discussion with Ben, Ernest, and Thomas. So I headed over to to find out what Ben had discovered about Bernalillo. I could tell that the news would not be good by the serious looks on their faces. When I asked about it Ben told me that he and his fellow officers had made contact with the Mayor of Bernalillo on their radios and Bernalillo had for all practical purposes shut down. The Police Chief did not think anyone was left in the buried town, but even if there were still a few, any rescues would have to be accomplished from the air by the National Guard. Ben looked pretty upset about it. But I began to realize that this is what Marta had told me about. Ultimately we would all have to feel like we have been released and free to leave this place. But I still felt for Ben and Marlita, because their house and the life they had were gone. Fortunately Anita was blissfully ignorant of what had happened and she was beginning to get the hang of the game Lena was teaching her. Ernest was trying to encourage Ben by saying, Well Ben, look at me, as far as we know Namb is buried too, so I have to start all over again. We have to think of this as an opportunity and that is how we should approach it. We may be down, but we are not out, and if we stick together and work together we may actually get some great things done, God willing.

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Ernest is wise and compassionate, I heard in my head. I thought, 'that is odd, Lord is that you?' 'Yes Antonio, I thought it would be best to speak to you when you were being quiet and pensive.' 'Ha, well I am glad that you didn't just spring it on me out of the blue, at least I have already heard you through journaling.' I said silently to the Lord. 'Yes, we are going to have quite an adventure together and I will show you the way to avoid the terrible things which will be happening soon.' the Lord said. 'Alright, I will keep an ear open, Lord.' I said to Him. By the time I made my way back over to Estella the girls were playing an energetic game of hide and seek although the space was limited by the tables, Anna had arrived and had joined in the fun. Anita made me smile because she took advantage of her small size and slipped under the table while Lena was trying to tag her. Whenever Anna was it she would do her counting and then turn around and pretend she was a monster. When the little girls saw that they giggled and gave their hiding places away. I sat down with Estella and said. So has the transition to playmates been peaceful? Estella laughed, brightly and said, Well it was pretty iffy at first, but I think Anita just got tired of sitting and watching Lena running around her. Then of course Anna showed up and sat with them for a while playing the hand clapping games with them and then they couldn't resist matching wits with this very tall person in a game of hide and seek. So Antonio, is it very bad news for Ben and Marlita? Yes, Bernalillo has just shut down, they cannot cope with what is happening and they are hoping the National Guard will be able to rescue anyone who might have stayed behind, from the air, with helicopters. I said. Oh that is bad. Oh well I guess we can't stay here forever if we don't have homes to go back to. Estella observed. No, God is going to show us what to do shortly. I said. Oh, so journaling the dream was successful? Estella asked with a grin. Yes, but I can't talk much about it yet. It will all come out soon enough. I replied. Hmmm, she said and slipped her arm through mine. A man of mystery. Just what I've
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been looking for. And she smiled at me in a way that made my head spin. Our afternoon was spent in keeping the children out of their parent's hair, Lena and Anita got a tremendous kick out of sitting on our laps and pretending that they were our children. So after I had taken each girl all around the shelter on piggy back and after many peals of childish laughter, we were relieved when their parents came to take them to supper. As a piggy back horse I was done-in and grateful for the rest. We were in line for supper with our friends when my phone rang, it was Madalena for Ernest and Adelita. Ernest had a brief chat with her and then let Adelita talk to her. Ernest turned to us and said, They have made it to Taos and they think it may take all day tomorrow, but they should get here tomorrow evening. I nodded, and pondered what news the children would be bringing. We were getting close to the end of the food line, and we were watching the television which had been set up to entertain the people in line, when a news person interrupted the incessant droning about the volcano with the announcement that since the Governor could not be located, and much time had been lost looking for him, the Lt. Governor had stepped forward and asked for federal help. Then not three minutes later, the announcement that marshal law had been declared for the entire State, came over the television set. So a curfew was announced and the further more sinister report that looters would be shot, stunned me. After all Estella and I had been all over Bernalillo when it was very nearly evacuated those first few days and we had not seen a single instance of looting, I wondered what could be next. I looked at Ben who was not far away in the line and he shook his head and said to me, So now I am glad to be out of a job Antonio, I would have felt absolutely terrible if I had shot someone only to discover that they were just looking for food. I have been saved from that nightmare! Then congratulations are in order Ben, despite all that has happened. I said and I reached out and gave him a firm handshake. As I turned away I heard, 'There will be more news before too long,' from the Lord. We got our food and we were seated when Thomas' phone rang, it was Martin, they chatted and after hanging up Thomas said, Martin has rounded up all of the people in the shelter who need a ride to this shelter and they are going to sleep in the bus tonight after eating and using the facilities at the Taos shelter. They will start early in the morning after breakfast.

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That is good, so we only have to wait one more day before they will join us, I said, I was thinking about what Madalena and Martin had told us, and there was nothing alarming yet. My heart ached for them because I knew that something would happen tomorrow that would change all that. Well since the latest news was good for a change we were pretty chipper through this meal. I was smiling as I watched Ernest and Adelita, for they were glowing in anticipation. I had much to consider as we walked back to the trailer. I was holding Estella's hand and we went to sit on the tailgate of the truck again and Blue was very happy to see us. I was glad to see him too, being around so many people was still very new to me. I was sort of decompressing and Blue had been my companion through thick and thin and of course there was Estella whose heart I had come to care for so quickly. I found that I was amazed in her presence, I felt like I was looking into the hidden things of the universe when I looked into her deep brown eyes, and something seemed to be melting inside me. We sat and kissed and snuggled a little while the volcano rumbled menacingly in the distance, but it could not scare me, somehow I knew things would be alright, perhaps God had strengthened my heart in the face of all of this tragedy, and even the dreams He sent and His warnings helped me to see that He is always watching over us. We were pretty much kissing good night, although I cannot say that I would ever want to quit kissing Estella, when we felt a tremor that seemed to increase until it was bouncing the truck and the trailer and shaking them up. We looked toward the volcano and it shot a column of fire straight up in the air, and fiery streamers then seemed to arc out in all directions. And I thought it would dissipate, but it didn't, the bright arcs of fire just kept on going as if it were a fire hose spewing fire instead of water. The tremors brought Marta and Anna out of the trailer and we all watched in awe of what had been unleashed. I figured that since the volcano was so far over the horizon (about 90 miles away) this fireworks display was really getting up high into the sky. It seemed that it was not going to stop any time soon so after a while we all said good night. Estella stayed a little while after her mother went in and she gave me a really good kiss to dream on. So she went in and I climbed into the back of the truck with Blue and we got settled. I turned on my lantern, got out my journal, and proceeded to thank Him for Estella and all that had happened since we met. I wrote 'What would You like to say to me Lord?' And this is what He said. Antonio I am bringing you and Estella and all of you together to be a family for Me. There are things ahead of you that will require the individual talents of you all at different times. I will bring you to a place where you will be safe and then I will bring people to you, to care for and you will find that I will make a time and place for you to tell them about Me.

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Lord? I asked, We are not supposed to seek out people to tell them about You? No Antonio, the Lord said, Sometimes I send you and sometimes I bring them to you. This time it will be much better if I bring them to you. You will see how this works I have a lot of good things in mind. Most of all Antonio I want you to carry this knowledge with you, I am with you every moment of every day, and I will make your life sing in harmony with those around you who love Me and walk with Me. I do these things because I love you and there is nothing that you have to do to earn that love. I simply love you already. So I want you to sit with Me for a little while before you go to sleep, I have something to show you. Alright and thank You Lord. I said. So I turned off my lantern and sat there for a while not quite knowing what to expect and then I began thinking of the stories of Jesus, how He healed people and cared for people, feeding thousands and bringing people back to life even when they were dead. Then I found myself on the shores of the Sea of Galilee I looked around and at first I did not see anybody, but then I saw a tall man walking toward me, it was odd but he was dressed like a Navaho shepherd I had met once when our grazing allotments were next to each other. I was not sure how this could happen by the sea of Galilee, but I watched him approach. When he was close to me he said Sgueme or Follow me in Spanish, I followed him and we went through a thicket and there was his flock. He called to the sheep and gave them an order and they started to follow him too. We went away from the Sea of Galilee and headed off into a very wild looking place, with lots of rocks and very dry. We were following a beaten track which looked like it had always been there. After some hours we came to a place which was sheltered by a huge rock and there was some water there, he let the flock drink and he came to see me, and he said, Venid en pos de m, y os har pescadores de hombres. which is Follow me and I will make you fishers of men. I thought, 'that is a very odd thing to say in this deserted place,' but of course by now I had realized that this was the Lord. So He called His sheep and we entered a deep canyon and as we went along the canyon floor mounted up higher and higher until I could see that we were approaching the top. We left the canyon and came out onto a plateau or mesa. And still He kept on with a purpose. Soon we were climbing the side of a hill and I saw that there were no longer just little scrubby patches of green plants but I was seeing shrubs and as we went along taller shrubs, and then ahead trees. Then we fell in with a road which was going up a mountain, it followed a winding stream that gushed playfully down it's steep bed. Higher and higher we rose as we followed the road, and then we came into a beautiful valley with massive tall peaks all around. And grass! My, it was the best grass I had ever seen. The sheep did not look at the grass for long, but fell to and started grazing as if they
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were famished. The Shepherd watched His flock spread out in grazing and He motioned for me to come. We walked to a rocky out cropping and sat down, He looked at me and smiled, and then He said, Jehov es mi pastor; nada me faltar. En lugares de delicados pastos me har descansar; Junto a aguas de reposo me pastorear.... He recited the whole 23rd Psalm in Spanish, and then it flashed across my mind my Grandmother (mi Abuelita) was reading it to me when I was just 4 years old and I saw her lined and worried face which would relax some as she read the wonderful Scripture to me. Her aged, lined cheeks and crow's feet were precious in my memory for this was someone who really loved me, in whose eyes I continually saw love. And as my Grandmother's face faded I saw Jesus with that same look in His eyes, only without the worry, without the cares of the hard scrabble existence my Grandmother had lived. He looked at me and said, You will find peace and wonder in your life with Me Antonio. I am the place where you will find pasture and good water. When you are with Me you are in this place of plenty even when the world makes it hard to be at peace or to live without worry and pain. The world is all of the dry, barren places we crossed to get here, and dangerous worrisome places they are too. But here you are with Me in Spirit and in Truth, here is My provision and My care. And with that He built a fire and we drank pure water out of the stream and we ate tortillas and beef jerky out of His bag. I was enjoying just being around Him and we talked and laughed and I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that He was shaping my future to allow me to find my way to Him anytime I wanted. I would seek Him and I would do it often, I would live with Him in my heart. Gradually I became aware of my surroundings in the truck and Blue was sleeping peacefully beside me, and the volcano was roaring and growling in the distance. I was tired and pulled up my sleeping bag and went to sleep. Morning came and it was like waking up to an annoying noise, but I soon remembered that it was the volcano I was hearing, and it was an annoying noise. I yawned and stretched and Blue looked up at me and I got his leash and we opened the hatch and I sat on the tailgate for a moment letting the cool morning air wake me up, and watching the clouds of ash which obscured a large part of the sunrise. I was walking Blue in the empty field next to the road when the sun started to come up over the mountains to the east. It was beautiful beyond description and the clouds from the volcano were tinged with red and gold, and then Estella was with me, she had spotted us out in the field, and
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had come to join us. Good morning, querida. I said and gave her a peck on the cheek, she still looked pretty sleepy, but she seemed to enjoy my greeting. Good morning, She said and then she had a great big yawn. Excuse me Antonio Oh I understand. I said, do you want to go in and take our showers. Sure, she said and yawned again. I headed back to the truck and I started to put Blue back in when Estella said Hey I have an idea let's let Blue snooze with Anna she will probably enjoy his company and warmth since I left the bed. OK, I said, I imagine Blue will like that. So we let Blue into the trailer and he hopped right up next to Anna and lay down, Anna roused a little and she said, Oh, and put an arm over Blue and they both looked so content, that I had to suppress a giggle lest I wake Marta. OK, that went over well. I said. Yes, I think she missed getting to sit with him last night. We kind of kept him to ourselves last night. She said. Well I certainly enjoyed it. I said, and I kissed her hand. You are in a buoyant mood this morning. She said, watching me closely. Oh yes, I am, the Lord showed me some incredible things last night. I said. Showed you? She said, you had a vision? Yes, I guess that's what it was, I was walking and talking with Him, it was amazing! I said. And you weren't asleep? she asked. No when I was journaling last night, He told me to sit with Him for a while after, and
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He took me to a place, an incredible place. I said. That's great, you know that was what Momma was going to talk to you about next, sitting with the Lord and letting Him meet you in a vision, like in the Bible, in fact that is how the book of Revelation starts. She said. Well I understood Him to have a particular purpose in meeting me that way, anyway it was the coolest thing, I met Him by the Sea of Galilee. I said. Listen, she said and she laid her fingers on my lips, which was, I must say, a very pleasant sensation. Why don't we take our showers first and then we will sit down and and you can tell me the whole thing. I said, OK, even though I wanted to go ahead and tell her, but I could see the wisdom of her suggestion. So we got in line to go to the showers, and who should I run into but Ernest, in the line for the guys shower. He told me that he was too wound up to sleep, what with Madalena on her way, even thought it was still many hours away, and Adelita was still asleep, and he didn't want to disturb her I said, I know Madalena will get here just fine. Ernest looked me in the face and said, How do you know that Antonio? Well the other day you said that God was going to bring Madalena here to us, and I believe that you were absolutely right. He is guiding us in this bad time and we are going to be just fine. I said. Ernest gave me a funny look and said, You are hearing Him aren't you? I said, How do you know that Ernest? Because He told me I would meet a man who can hear Him as I do. He said. Well I was surprised, I'm happy to tell you that I must be the one. And you will be glad to know that Marta and her girls can hear Him too. Marta taught me how to listen. I said. Ernest gave me a grin, and said, Ha, I will not have to feel lonely any more, sometimes it is hard when you can't tell anyone about it and no one would believe you if you did.

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I stood there musing on what Ernest had told me and I heard 'Ha!' in my heart. So Ernest and I took our showers and we got dressed and I told him that I was going to meet Estella. Ernest asked, Will I be in the way if I tag along? Well as a matter of fact since we talked about it, I can tell you that I am going to tell her about something the Lord showed me last night. I said. Oh this will be good! Ernest said, and his eyes danced. We met Estella and went to sit down at a table,and I said, Guess what Estella. And she looked a little confused and said What? Ernest can hear the Lord. I said. Haha, oh, that's great, she said, I was wondering if we were going to be able to talk about what you saw with Ernest here. And Ernest asked, Saw? Yes Ernest I had a vision, I said, and it was wonderful. I bet it was, Ernest said smiling. So I told them what I had seen and when I got to the part about my Abuelita and the 23rd Psalm in Spanish, I recited it and I saw the tears in Ernest's eyes. And I knew then that the vision wasn't only for me. Jesus had touched his heart too, and from now on Ernest would know that he could have a place to retreat to, to be with the Lord. Oh, I am so glad you told me, Estella said. That is wonderful. Ernest looked at us with tears in his eyes and said, I see great things for you two. This is going to be incredible. He kissed both our hands and said, Well, I guess I should go see if I can wake Adelita up. I will see you two at breakfast. And he got up and walked off in the direction of the gym.

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Well, Estella said, I guess Mama will be stirring, should we go see what she is about? Yes, let's go see. I said. When we got to the trailer the ladies were awake and almost ready to go eat breakfast, Marta was up and dressed and Anna was dressed and sitting up and scratching Blue's ears. Blue was basking in Anna's attentions, and was stretched out on the bed with his head on Anna's leg. Well, just another day in the neighborhood of a volcano. I said. Well you are looking bright and sassy, Marta said. I should, we made a discovery this morning. I said. Oh? Marta looked at me, what is it? Ernest can hear the Lord, I said. Really! This is wonderful and it will be easier than I thought. Marta said. Easier? What's easier? I asked. Getting everyone together around the Lord. That is the reason He brought us together. Did Ernest mention if anyone else knows? Marta asked. Ah, well he didn't say anything about what Adelita thinks about it. So I guess if she doesn't know, then maybe no one else knows either, but of course I am only guessing from what he didn't say, and he did say that he couldn't tell anyone about it. I said. Marta said, We will see soon enough, Antonio, today will be an eventful one! We walked Blue again and put him up, then we made our way to breakfast. As we stood in line, I was struck by the difference between our family group and our hopeful attitudes, and the sad features of the people around us. I wanted so much to be able to help them all, but I did not know where to start. Then I heard the Lord's voice in my heart, 'You will see some of these people again Antonio. I will bring them to you when they are ready to hear the message that I will give you to share with them.'

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I said, Thank You Lord. silently. As we passed the television I noticed that the tone of the news stories had all turned dark and hopeless. And it seemed that the news organizations were dwelling on the worst stories possible. Stories about looting, abandonment, and mayhem. The tone of the news would easily make a sad person despair. I could tell that Estella, and Marta had noticed it too. Marta was encouraging the person next to her in line, and Estella held my hand and gave it a little squeeze. Our breakfast companions were resigned to not hearing anything further about their children until sometime later, so there was an air of frustrated anticipation. Ben had been on the radio with the Bernalillo government in exile before breakfast, and they had told him to put the keys to the patrol car in an envelope and leave them with the shelter officials, he told me that he thought the instructions were odd, but he had double checked the car for any of his own possessions, locked it up, and turned in the keys. So I thought, 'we are all free to respond to whatever you want us to do next Lord.' And I heard, 'Yes Antonito, I am going before you in the next stage of your journey.' I just had to smile at the Lord's using the same endearment my Abuelita had used so often. Jesus' regard for me was so complete, so much like the feeling of contentment I had when I stayed with Abuelita when I was little. I remembered how she would sit with me, and read to me, and the extra pains she took to tuck me in and kiss me good night, when I knew that she had so many worries of her own. I was bathed in the warmth of His presence for a moment. I looked up and Ernest caught my eye and grinned at me, so of course I smiled back at my brother. The breakfast this morning had been a little different, pancakes and sausage, and Lena was amusing herself and entertaining Anita by holding up her pancake to see what shape it had achieved after each bite. They were giggling and laughing out loud. I enjoyed the simple happiness of their laughter, it seemed to lift the general atmosphere around us. My phone rang and it was for Ernest, he talked briefly and said good-bye, handing the phone back to me, he had a surprised look on his face. He turned to me and said, Madalena has found her mother, my daughter, but she says she is in a funk and she is not responding to anyone or anything. She bundled her onto the bus to escape from the soldiers who were taking people away in trucks. She is holding her mother in her arms and asked me to pray for her mother's senses to return.
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Did she tell you anything further about the soldiers? I asked. No, and I don't think I should alarm the folks at the table in general with that news until we know more about it. Ernest said. She said that she was losing cell phone signal strength so she couldn't talk. I do think I should ask Thomas and Ben about it though. I said, OK, I think that might be a good idea and I will ask the Lord to heal her mother's mind, she must have had a very hard time of it. What is her name? Marisa, Marisa Kaskalla. Ernest said, and he turned and touched Adelita's arm and took her aside to tell her the news. Adelita gasped at the news of her daughter and she said, What about Joe? Ernest said, She didn't say anything about Joe, so I have to think she hasn't heard anything about him. So by now the table was aware that some news had come and they were waiting patiently for Ernest to tell them about it. Ernest said, That was my granddaughter on the phone and they have left Taos, the surprise is she told me that she found her mother, our daughter, at the shelter at Taos and she is bringing her here, but the worrying part is that my daughter seems to be in a daze and is not responding normally. So I would like to ask you all to pray for her, her name is Marisa Kaskalla. Then Ernest called Thomas, Ben and me over and asked us if he could speak to us privately. We left the room and went outside, Ernest told us about what Madelena had told him and he asked the guys, Have you heard anything about soldiers relocating refugees? Ben said, No, I know that there was a lot of furor about what to do with victims of disasters after Katrina happened, but I didn't hear anything more about it, after that died down. Thomas said, Yes I did hear about a plan like that, just before I left the Guard, but I can't believe that they would implement it for this situation. Listen, I am expecting Martin to call when they stop for lunch, I mean surely Farmington has cell coverage. So if he does call I will ask him what he saw. Then with two reports we might be able to tell more about what is happening. OK, if he calls we should meet again and discuss it.

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Alright, lets go back in and pray for Marisa with the ladies. Ben suggested. We went back in and sat down Ben said, Marta I was thinking that we should be praying for Marisa. Do you want to lead us in prayer? Sure, Marta said, Lets pray. So I held hands with Estella and Ernest and we bowed our heads. Marta started off, Lord Jesus we have a member of our group, who is to be with us shortly, who is wounded inside and having trouble coping with her loss and her wounds, please heal Marisa's heart and give her mind peace, as we pray. and she paused. Ernest said, Lord, Marisa has always been a resilient person, a brave person, who only ever wanted to do what was right, please touch her heart and heal it. I want to come before You as a father, to You, my Father, and ask You to help her to cope and deal with her grief and pain. I felt I should say something, so I asked the Lord what I should pray for and I saw a picture in my mind of a woman with her arm in a sling, with a young girl holding her in her arms and crying. And I thanked Him for showing that to me. I was thinking of saying my part of the prayer when Lena started to speak. Jesus please help Ernest and Adelita's daughter to be alright and to make it here alright, we want to meet Marisa and hug her. she said. So then I said, Lord please heal Marisa's shocked mind and her arm, bring her senses back as Madelena holds her and cries and worries over her so that Madelena can see how You care for us even in the most hopeless situations. Please bring your presence into this situation. Lord. Everyone else prayed silently, and after a while Marta said We thank you Lord that you listen to the lowest, the most humble people on the earth and that our requests are never in vain, thank You Jesus, Amen We sat quietly for a few minutes, and I know that I felt refreshed when we all started to look around and talk again.

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So after relaxing for a while I realized that I had not had much exercise lately and I suggested to Estella that we take a walk with Blue. Estella looked at me and smiled, she said, I think I would walk anywhere with a couple of handsome guys like you and Blue. Aw, shucks, I said, but if you like we can ask Anna or some of the others if they would like to go too. Sure let's ask, I would guess that some of our people are feeling a little cooped up now. She said. So we asked around and Lena after checking with her Mom joined us, Marlita, Anita and Anna joined us. So we really had quite a group. Each of us grabbed a disposable mask from the pile which the shelter had provided near the outside doors. I thought we might be able to walk around the block on the sidewalk and up the irrigation ditch road, and back. So I got Blue out of the truck and we started off with Lena between Estella and I and Anita between Anna and Marlita, and Blue trotting alongside us on his leash. We walked all the way around the school and through the neighborhood next door and we reached the irrigation ditch road and Lena begged me to take Blue's leash so I handed it over and Lena went just a little ahead of us talking animatedly to Blue, who would look back at her every once in a while as if he was paying attention. We got to the end of the section of road we were on where the ditch went into a culvert and under a section of the local neighborhood when Lena saw a brown pile of something by the road in the grassy stubble, she went over to look at it , when she was still some distance from it she let out a cry in surprise just as we saw Blue circle around her and push her back towards us. When we caught up to them Blue was leaning against Lena in such a way that she could get no closer to the brown pile, which we now saw was a rattlesnake. The rattler's presence there was no huge surprise since the irrigation ditch was next to a large fallow field. The snake was one of those short, fat bodied prairie rattlers, he was coiled up and glaring at us. He could feel the seven of us approaching, and he was totally on the defensive, his rattles seemed to be going, but I couldn't hear much of anything. I realized that he had just cast his skin and his skin and rattles were soft and he was very grumpy. I also wondered if the gritty volcanic dust which lay all over everything, in drifts, was giving him an especially painful time of it before his skin hardened up. I picked up Lena to relieve Blue who kept on trying to push her away from the reptile. Then just as he had
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so often in the mountains, when we ran across snakes, Blue sidled by the creature keeping his eyes on it, while carefully keeping out of striking range. Lena was a little shaken by this scare and she clung to me for a little while as I carried her back to the sidewalk, I encouraged her by saying, It's alright Lena, Blue and I run across those critters all the time up in the mountains, and he always warns me in plenty of time. When we got to the sidewalk I put her down and she immediately stepped over to Blue and said, Blue you saved me, you are a hero, Blue. and gave Blue a big hug around the neck. I had to chuckle, because Blue had a look on his face like, It is all in a day's work, young lady. Then when Lena was finished hugging him, we all took turns at congratulating him and patting him. Blue was glad to get back to his good old truck, and after I poured him some fresh water, and got some food out for him, Anna said she would like to sit with him a while, so we left them together and headed back to the shelter. Well, maybe we should stay as chaperones for Anna and Blue, Estella said jokingly. I don't know, I said, Blue is so much more reliable and mature than many boys his age. Estella laughed at this and we went through the doors to the shelter's food area. Lena looked up at me and tugged on my hand. I said, Yes, Lena. Is Blue a angel? She asked sweetly. Well, I said, If you mean is Blue someone who God sent to bring us a message, then no he is not. But if you mean is Blue a dog who watches over us and loves us, and helps us and protects us, and God sent him to us, then I would say yes, he is an angel in that way. Oh good, Lena said, and she ran into the area where her parents were. She plopped
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down between them and said Mom, we saw a rattlesnake and Antonio's dog Blue kept me from getting close to it. He pushed me away from it. Thomas looked up at me and said, So Antonio, you trained Blue well. Ah, I said, He's just a really smart dog, and my best friend, and I caught Estella's eye and said, Well, he is my best male friend, and my good companion when I am sheepherding. Yes, he must be your eyes and ears when you are up there. Thomas observed thoughtfully. There may not be any up there any more for us. Blue and I need to find another vocation. I said. Then Thomas said, Antonio, I am beginning to catch the optimism of our group, and yes, I believe that God will provide that for you both! Then Thomas' phone rang and we were all interested in the news it would bring, Thomas took special pains to go into another part of the shelter and he spoke their native Keres dialect to Martin for privacy. Ben, Marlita, and Anita sensed the anticipation of the group and came to sit with us while Thomas was on the phone. I went to find Ernest because I knew that one way or another we would all need to discuss the news this call would bring. I found Ernest and we went back to the place where everyone else was sitting, and waiting. When Thomas came back into the room he shot Ernest and I a look and he said to the table at large, Martin called just before they stopped for lunch at Farmington. They are right on schedule, and should be with us this evening between four and five. Then he motioned for Ben and Ernest and I to join him. As I was clearing the chairs to follow them, Marta caught my eye and mouthed the word Now! I nodded back to her and said I know. We went outside so we wouldn't be overheard. Thomas said, It is as I feared, Martin saw the troops too, they were National Guard from Texas and California, and they were rudely pushing people around and loading
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them onto trucks to take them away. He actually had some trouble getting the people he was supposed to pick up, who were having breakfast, out of the way before they swept the rest into the trucks. Gentlemen, it is only a matter of time and logistics which will keep them from loading us up and carting us off too. Oh! said Ben, This does sound like the encampment plan they were arguing about after Katrina, I didn't really think they would ever implement it. Yes, Thomas said, They put me on staff with my Colonel before my time was up and he had to survey sites for the camps. I saw it mentioned in the newspaper when he did it, but it was buried in the middle of the B section, I doubt that many people noticed it. OK, Ernest said, So what can we do? Alright, I said and sighed, I know this may sound strange, but I knew this was coming because I had a dream. I looked at the men and noticed that they were expressing surprise, but also that they were listening. So I told them about the dream and the journal entry. When I finished, there was silence. Well then, so I guess we should leave, there is little doubt that they are coming here next. I was surprised to hear Ben say. Yes, Thomas said, I would guess that they will be coming tomorrow, they will want to catch people in the morning when they will be surprised and put up less of a fuss, and the reason they haven't been here already is because they probably lack enough trucks and fuel. So much for lightning operations eh, Ben? Yes, but that's good for us. How are you all fixed for gas. Ben said. I said, I gassed up the last time I was in Bernalillo so I don't have a full tank, but I have a mostly full tank, and gentlemen, let me put this on the table, I have a full five gallon can in my truck, so I think it should go to the person with the least gas in their tank. I will need to check with Estella to see how much she has in her car, but I think it was mostly full too. Ernest said, I will have to check, but it wasn't that long ago that I filled up. We can't leave until our children get here, but we can take off as soon as the curfew
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lifts in the morning. Thomas said. It is only about one hundred and sixty miles to Percha Dam State Park. I think if we head straight south on highway 45 we can catch up with I-25 further down. We don't want to attract any attention so I am thinking that maybe 65 mph would be a good speed on the Interstate. I said. Also I have been to that park before and it is not very close to a large town so I would like to suggest that we stop in Truth or Consequences to eat and to pick up whatever supplies we need. How will we finance this excursion? Ben asked. Well Ben, I guess as we find banks along the way, we can all pitch in, but I have a check for my whole season's pay and I figured after I get to a bank, to cash it, I could buy some of the tents for whoever needs the help. I also imagine that it will be a good idea to fill our gas tanks in town before we go to the State Park. So whenever anyone comes up short I will take up the slack, the fishing is mighty good at Percha Dam, so I think that everyone who wants one should get a fishing license and some tackle. I said. Hmm, seems to me that you are taking a lot on yourself. Ben said. Ben, I have three and a half months pay all in one shot and if we are to hang together, as I think we should, I am willing to use the money to help us do it. But if you guys can get cash at the bank or ATM I could concentrate on getting the groceries we'll need. I said. Ben pondered a bit and he said, I think that I should see what bank branches or ATMs there are in Truth or Consequences and at least pay for our own stuff. Well of course, if they will let me, after all my bank is buried. This picking up and evacuating may be tough where the matter of access to funds is concerned. I understand that and that is why I am prepared to help, actually that is probably why I had this check when the volcano blew. We must not discount the ability of God to cover the details. I said. Yes, that may be the most puzzling part of all of this, Ben said. But then, it is the most likely explanation, too, Ernest said. Thomas said, You know I better check my gas level, I am not certain that I have as much as I thought. And he took off in the direction of his Suburban.
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Me too, Ernest said, and off he went. Ben and I chatted as we headed back into the shelter. So you have dreams that warn you about things? He said. Yes Ben I had a dream about the mountain blowing up too, I didn't understand that God was telling me something, but Marta told me what it meant and that was one of the reasons I was so ready to run when I saw it. I said. I'm just curious, what was the other reason? Ben said. I just watched a whole darn mountain blow up, it didn't take me long to figure out that I should take off, especially after the warning. I said. Yeah, I guess so, Ben said and chuckled. I sat down by Estella and asked her how much gas she had in her car. Remember, we filled it up on the way back here the other night, oh, I mean a couple of nights ago. She said, How come? You know my dream? It's happening in Taos, Martin and Madalena saw soldiers loading all the people into trucks and taking them away, and me and the guys are planning to get us all together and take off in the morning as soon as the curfew lifts. So we need to know how much gas each person has so we can know how far we all can go together. I said. My car is ready to go Jefe! Hey is it too early to call shotgun! Estella said with laughing eyes. Who will drive your car? I asked. Mama and Anna can both drive my car, and I think they might even like to, I don't think Mama will mind, to give us some time together. She said smiling. I couldn't think of anything to say so I just sighed. That is just the response I was hoping for. She said and the look of affectionate
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mischief returned to her eyes. This will be so much fun! Ever since I had the dream, I had been trying to imagine what my state of mind would be when I would have to steel myself to be ready to run and now the Lord pitched me a curve ball because now, gazing into Estella's eyes, I was so looking forward to running away. Lunch was eventful, we were making a shopping list of the things we would be needing. We had various sized tents for every one's families on the list, two for Thomas' family, we guessed that two would be more economical than one really big one, we would see what they had, so we put a question mark next to that. The groceries were a bit tougher, I just guessed that we would need several cases of canned veggies and canned meat, each, and some flour, corn meal, salt, shortening, coffee, dried soups, dried beans, rice, and noodles, instant mashed potatoes, at least one big box of dried milk and some gallon jugs of bottled water, and I was trying to remember how many cans I had left of the somewhat rare canned bacon I liked to take up to the mountains with me. I had just about worked myself into a state, when Ernest caught my eye and said, Do not worry my brother, God will provide and make what we need available, He has brought us so very far already. Thanks for reminding me Ernest. I was beginning to worry too much about it, I should know better. I replied, I sat back and remembered the beautiful valley Jesus had taken me to and I saw peace again in His eyes. The afternoon proved to be a long fretful time because our people, who were sleeping in the shelter, started to quietly move their unnecessary items out to their vehicles to be ready to move quickly tomorrow morning, and we split my five gallon gas can between Ernest and Thomas' vehicles to top them up. When that was done we had nothing to do but wait for the children to get here from Farmington, and waiting is the worst. Estella, Anna, and I tried to keep the children occupied by playing games and that helped pass the time. Robert, Thomas, Thomas Jr., and Ernest had taken up lookout positions outside from about four o'clock on. Estella and I would alternate taking them coffee and seeing how they were doing. About 5:15 PM the buses came in and started unloading their longed for cargo, I was playing a game with Lena when I heard Here they are! shouted from the outside doors. I hopped up and said, Hey Lena, lets go see Martin. We joined the crowd outside on the sidewalk, there were a lot of shouts and tears. I spotted Madalena who was leading Marisa. Marisa seemed to be responding to people
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again, but when she saw her Father and Mother she ran to them and clung to them, each in turn, with her good arm, crying, and saying Oh, Mama and Papa again and again. Martin was just about the last person off the last bus. Thomas saw him first and gave a joyful shout and ran to hug his son, surrounded by his wife and kids. I was kind of expecting a smaller clone of Robert who is tall and graceful, but Martin is a little stouter and more formidably built, and to top it all he has a strong, intelligent face, but his amused expression showed that every roadblock and impediment he encountered was just a new challenge to him. I watched them for a little while and I was amused by the the way the brothers engaged in some affectionate rough housing. So we all retreated into the shelter where the new arrivals were checking in. Marisa was holding tight to her Father's hand as she waited to be registered. When that formality was over Ernest, Adelita, and Marisa sat down to talk. Lena and Anita approached Marisa together cautiously, and holding hands. Lena said, Hello Marisa, Ernest, your Father, told us about you and we wanted to meet you and say hi. When Marisa looked at the expectant faces of Lena and Anita, she reached out with her uninjured hand to them to hold their hands, Lena saw her chance and reached up and kissed Marisa on the cheek closely followed by Anita. Marisa's surprised reaction was the first smile I had seen on her face, the first of many, though later, at times, she would retreat into her thoughts and sorrows, she was definitely improving. That night, at supper, we celebrated and thanked God for bringing our scattered people together. We had a tinge of anxiety about our exodus in the morning, but it also felt as if we were about to embark on an adventure too. When supper was over and most everybody turned in, for the early morning would come soon enough, the drivers for tomorrow had a short meeting to agree on where we would join up in our cars in the morning and where to meet in Truth of Consequences if we got separated. I was to lead off because my truck and trailer were the easiest to spot and follow, and we walked out a ways to let all of the drivers have a good look at my truck and trailer for recognition purposes. Then Estella and I sat at the table in the shelter for a little while as we pored over the map of the city, I discovered a good place to cut over to catch I-25 and memorized the street names. Estella would be my co-pilot and navigator so she familiarized herself with the route too. She had a good idea too, to tie a red scarf she had firmly on a long ice scraper/snow brush I carried in the truck to put out the window and raise above the truck roof, to add a visual cue while we are forming up in the morning and to put out to indicate an upcoming turn or exit. So tired and full of hope
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we kissed good night, so she could join her Mama and Anna who had gone to bed earlier, in the trailer. I clambered into the back of the truck with Blue and we settled down for the night. I set the alarm for 4:30 AM. The plan was to inconspicuously sneak out by taking the children out to the cars in the guise of getting them up to use the bathroom. Of course a genuine bathroom break was called for under the circumstances, but after that they would go out the outside door, in the case of Thomas and Elena's large family the older boys Robert and Thomas Jr. would each take one or two of the young ones out to their Suburban and then Martin would corral and supervise the rest as they were brought out. That way we could be ready by six and we could roll just as the curfew lifted for the day. I had a hard time settling down to sleep so I sat up and journaled a little, I shared my fear that the National Guard would catch us leaving or that we would have some bad hitch in the plan. I wrote 'what would you like to tell me Lord?' And He said. 'Antonio, you may relax in the understanding that I have planned this far ahead of time. There may be a couple of things which surprise you in the morning, but be assured I will bring this off and it will be as if the coming soldiers cannot see you. You all will be safe and your trip to the State Park will be easier than you thought possible, rest in me tonight and sleep well.' So reassured, I stretched out and fell into a relaxing slumber, I was suddenly pretty alert when the alarm went off in the darkness before dawn, and the first thing I noticed was that Blue was up and listening to something, so I jumped up and dressed. I found it useful to follow my usual routine of walking Blue to scope out whatever it was that alerted Blue, and there it was, a Humvee down the street sitting in the space in front of the irrigation ditch road with it's interior lights on and it's motor running. An advanced scout I supposed. I put Blue up and gathered my shaving kit, and went into the shelter, the agreed plan was that I would check to see how everyone was doing, while I appeared to be doing my morning routine, and lend a hand if something went awry. I was relieved to see that Ernest, Ben, and Thomas were up and about, we met in line for the showers and I told them about the advanced scout down the block. Thomas said I think that means there has been a mild screw-up and they are having to wait on something, probably the trucks, he said grimly. Don't worry Thomas, we will waltz right out of here. I said quietly, and I proceeded to tell them about Estella's red flag so that no one would think anything was amiss when they saw it. So when we were finished with the showers and all, we dispersed to do our jobs. I went out to be sure that the ladies were waking up so they could go to the bathroom and get ready, and I thought to get a last bottle of water for Blue.
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I couldn't sit still so I took a walk down to the end of the block and back while watching the quiet activities in the parking lot where everyone else's cars were. I had spotted each one of our families in the lot and things were progressing nicely. At 5:45 AM I checked on Marta and Anna as they got into Estella's car and I told the tale of the red flag to them, I kicked the tires and checked the trailer hitch and I got into the cab. Estella was already riding shotgun with Blue at her side. I started the engine to warm it up. And at 6:00 AM I started to roll, Estella put the red flag out and I saw that each of the vehicles of our people were moving toward the road, a quick glance in the rear view mirror assured me that Marta was right behind us. I also saw the Humvee moving onto the road behind us, but I just kept right on with the others turning onto the road behind us. We made it to the intersection with highway 45 and I got in the left turn lane, I could see all of our people strung out behind me and the Humvee had stopped back at the last intersection. As we waited at the traffic light a column of heavy Army trucks roared into the intersection and turned to go towards the shelter. There they are, Estella said, right on schedule. It might sound like a lack of trust, but I heaved a big sigh of relief when the column of trucks was past us. Then our next test was up ahead, there was a Humvee on each side of the road and the Guardsmen were assembling big saw horses to set up a roadblock, but it was obvious that they had only just arrived and they were not ready to stop anyone when we passed on through. Estella kept the map open to find our back street way through to I-25, and at the proper time I turned my signal on and she raised the red flag and waved it. We made our turn and she started counting the cars that followed us, One, two, three, and four,that's it, they are all with us, Antonio. One more turn and we can get on the Interstate. She said. We got on the Interstate without a problem, and just as we got up to speed we saw another big column of Army trucks being led by a Humvee going north into town on the other side of the Interstate. I am not sure if it was a coincidence, but shortly after that we drove out from under the thick ash cloud that had blocked a lot of the morning sunrise in town. We were in the brilliant early sunshine with all of our people in tow. Hallelujah! We were on our way. The trip to Truth or Consequences went smoothly. As we moved along farther and farther from the disaster we were leaving behind, our spirits were lifted. Estella found my CD collection and we sang along to some of the tunes. Our biggest concern was that all of us get there without incident and Estella would check every once in a while to be sure that everyone was still with us, and each time she looked for them they were all there. We took the first exit on the north side of town at Truth or Consequences, and
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went to the parking lot of the big discount store near that exit. Once there Estella and I hopped into her car while everyone else went into the store to shop. We started looking for a bank to cash my paycheck, I was fortunate to find a branch of my boss' bank, and I was able to cash the check so I could seriously consider doing our shopping. Our first concern was our camping plan, I found a little library of pamphlets of the state parks near the entrance to the discount store. I fished out the one for Percha Dam SP and looked at the map of the campsites. I got the guys and their wives together and settled on how many campsites we would need and we arrived at five, to allow for an extra tent for Thomas and Elena's children. So I called the number on the pamphlet and reserved the spaces. I had found in my camping forays in the past, that reserving the space ahead was the easiest way to go. So we were set, and we would be welcome when we arrived. So the problem of shelter loomed next, Ben had been able to verify that his bank was still operating by using his ATM card and accessing his account. Thomas and Elena had a bank which had not been effected by the disaster so they could write a check for their tents and supplies. Ernest however could not access his bank through the ATM and we suspected that they had been knocked back if not out by the events of the past week. So I did get to help, Ernest and I picked a nice tent for them which actually had a couple of rooms, really zip up partitions, but it was made to order for them. Tastes in accommodations varied, but that store sold a lot of sleeping bags and cots that day. I tried to listen, carefully to the Lord while we were finding the things we needed and I bought an extra 4 person tent in a design I was familiar with and which was on sale. With a tarp for a ground sheet and a bigger tarp to use as a bad weather rain fly it seemed to be quite a bargain. I went a little crazy getting as much food as I thought wise for a two week stay. I thought that after two weeks we could make another trip to the grocery store if we needed to. Then we had a number of folks to sign up for fishing licenses. All of our adult males down to Martin got their licenses. And Anna and Estella got theirs too, we had quite a good time choosing rods and supplies for our adventure, I always carry my rods with me in the truck, so I helped others make decisions when they required it. Massive shopping makes for a massive hunger, I was fortunate enough to have come through this town before and I knew of a great Mexican place. We had our first nonshelter food for about a week there. When we were full and contented, we talked about the adventure ahead of us. Some of us were more apprehensive about being at loose ends than others, but on the whole I think the change of scenery had already lifted our group's mood up a notch and a half.

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We topped up our gas tanks and hit the road again although this time we swapped family members around a bit with various children riding with other families. For our part it was Lena who begged her Mother and Father to allow her to ride with us. She took up her place and seat belt next to Blue. Estella was keeping an eye on the rambunctious child, but Lena decided to behave herself completely that day and just enjoyed our company, even singing along with our songs. Not far south of Truth or Consequences is the exit for Caballo State Park and Percha Dam State Park, we were relieved to arrive with so little trouble. The short trip from the exit to the park took us over a number of cattle guards which set off a series of questions by Lena, who was astonished to learn that cattle were allowed to roam free here. Will the cows visit us at the park? She asked. Lena, I replied, I have been to this park before and they have fences around the park to keep the cows out. Oh, Lena said with a bit of disappointment. At last we arrived at the park and checking in only took a little while. I pulled up to my spot with electrical connections for the trailer. I set the stabilizers and plugged in to the electrical box and hooked up the water. I had long ago modified my electrical system to allow a small (5 watt) solar panel, which I had mounted on the roof, to recharge the trailer's battery and that had only allowed some lights at night and light use of my little refrigerator, so plugging in was quite a luxury, Woohoo! Our neighbors all had new tents to fuss with, so I lent a hand, after I told Marta and Estella that the electricity was definitely working. Setting up Ernest's tent was easy since it was a larger version of the extra tent I had gotten and I was very familiar with how to quickly put it up. Thomas' tent was a little more difficult, He had opted for an eight person tent, but our difficulty was really just because none of us had ever set up a tent that large before. I got tickled since the Thomas' boys had already set up their own smaller tent in jig time and had come to help. Even Ben came over to inspect the construction site when he was done with his tent. So finally we got it set up, and we had to start thinking about what we could do for supper, but Marta was way ahead of us. I thought maybe I could contribute something, and I found Marta and Estella figuring what to have and how to make enough for everyone, I told her that I knew how to make Dutch oven biscuits, corn bread, and cowboy coffee. She looked up from her calculations and said, Oh, of course
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you can Antonio, you had to either make them yourself or do without, right? Yes, I can make them in the fire ring if I get the fire going early enough to have the coals I need. I said. I could sure use some corn bread, that would really help me out, except, the problem is that we might need two or three batches. Marta said. Well I could certainly try one at a time and pop them out when they have cooled enough, and start on the next. I said, but if you need it I should get started on the fire now. Alright Antonio, if you are willing to do it, I would love it. Marta said. So, I got out my ruck sack and the pack I had for Blue, I snapped Blue's on and slung mine over my shoulder and we headed up to the building near the entrance where I had seen a container with firewood in it for the campers. I loaded Blue's pack up with kindling, branches and small logs and then put the bigger ones I could find and carry in mine. We made two trips before I was satisfied that we had enough for the job at hand. I was laying the fire, the smaller branches and the kindling first, when Ernest popped over and hunkered down with me by the fire ring. Ah, tending the fire was always my job when I was young and we were camping. He said. Yes, Blue and I have had many a fire to cheer our cool nights, when were up in the mountains. I especially crave the smell of the pion when it's burning and while it doesn't make very good coals I make sure that I get some in there like these branches and small logs. I have got some aspen and cottonwood too, it will do, I can't afford to be very choosy. I said. Hmm you are thinking of coals, are you going to be cooking? Ernest asked. Yes I have accepted the challenge to make three batches of corn bread in the Dutch oven. And I thought I would make a big pot of cowboy coffee when the guys start showing up for supper. I said. Haha, my old Daddy used to kid us when we camped, he would say the coffee is no good unless you can chew it. We would all laugh, but I remember that the coffee was pretty good if you remembered to throw out the grounds when you got to the bottom of
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the cup. Ernest said. I know it is easier to make and uses less coffee down here than it did up at altitude, so it should be pretty good. I said as I put the biggest logs on the top. Hey, I'll try some of your coffee for sure. Ernest said as he handed me the matches. I stuffed some newspaper I had saved for this purpose into the middle of the kindling and lit it. After only a few moments we could smell the pion. Ah, I said, taking in the aroma, Now that's a fire! Ernest and I watched the fire until the larger logs caught and the smaller stuff started to collapse. So hey, are you up for getting up at the crack of dawn and catching some trout? I said. Yes indeed I am, Ernest said. I got some knee length boots and everything. Oh yeah, we're gonna catch somethin' all right, I said. You know if we are talking about having enough to eat I'm going to fish for the brownies, they are usually bigger. Ernest said Last time I was here I only caught walleye, and that means that we will have to use steel leaders because of their teeth. It will be fun, you'll see. I said. Ernest smiled and said, It will just be fun to be fishin' again. I was already at the point of putting a new log on the fire when Estella came up and said, How's the fire Antonio? Oh, it is doing very well, it will be ready when Marta is. I said. Estella said, It is still thirty minutes before we are going to start on the meal and I was hoping we could stretch our legs, but I know that you can't leave the fire unattended. Ernest looked at me and winked Go ahead, he said, I'll watch the fire for you. Thanks Ernest, I said, and Estella and I set off for the river bank.
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Thank you for volunteering to make the corn bread, Antonio. We had a conference with the other Moms and we are going to rotate making the meals. We had to share out the Benevidez kids though to help out the smaller families. So I guess you will be fishing in the morning? Estella said. Yes Ernest and I will be and anyone else who wants to can join us. I said. Then I will be fishing too. Estella said. How are you at catching walleye, I said. Estella perked up and said, I have caught trout before and pan fried them too. I said, OK we will go up to the lake and try for brown trout in the morning. Pan fried trout sounds better for breakfast anyway. Ah, my man of mystery, he bakes cornbread on a campfire and fishes for the toothy walleye. Estella said, taking my arm and bumping me jovially. Mmmm, a woman of intrigue has got me by the arm, a woman who leads cars with a red flag and catches trout as easily as she has caught my affections. I said, and we laughed as we walked toward the lake above the dam. Supper that evening was fun, we found an extra picnic table which someone had broken free of it's padlock and chains and pushed it together with ours to make a big table. Even though Marta had volunteered us (her family) to make the meal, in actuality we had plenty of help. The feast, of canned green beans and canned ham cut up into small chunks with small round potatoes and a healthy shot of hot sauce, was a hit, partly because there was a lot of it, and most everyone liked my cornbread on the side, which I was able to make in reasonable quantities, it just took so long to cool and turn out! But we managed. My cowboy coffee went over pretty well too, Marta had some and pronounced it good. Only Ben had trouble with remembering to give the grounds the heave-ho, but by the end of the meal he had it figured out. I sat down by Ben after I had turned out and sliced my last batch of corn bread and I had gotten a plate of the main course, He laughed as he tossed the last bit of his coffee with the grounds into the weeds. I said Ah, yes, Ben we will be happy to have this coffee in the morning when we are
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getting up with the sun. After all I can make a half gallon at a time. I think that way we will all be able to get a cup to brace us up for the morning. Yes Antonio, it is not too bad once you get used to it. So I heard you have fished here before, what are you thinking of doing in the morning? Ben asked. Ben, there are plenty of walleye in this section and not very many trout, but Estella, Ernest and I were thinking of trying for brown trout so we can pan fry them for breakfast. So I though we could use baits and lures that trout like to get their attention, and fish above the dam, but we will have to use wire leaders anyway because of the walleye. I am going to dispense with my fly rod and use my spin caster because of the extra weight. OK, that sounds like a good place to start, fishing wise. Ben said, and then his expression became serious, and he said, So what do you think we can do here if the man from the ranch doesn't show. I thought for a second and then I said, So far God has shown us each step as it was about to happen. He warned me about the mountain, He even warned Marta to keep an eye out for me, He told us that we would meet you guys, all of you, and He warned me about the Guard dragging off the refugees and even that the kids would bring us the first news about that. So I think there is no way that the man from the ranch will not show. Of course if the Feds mean to put every refugee in the camps, I guess someone will be trying to find us, and maybe they are already looking. So I think that what He showed me about the man from the ranch is something which will happen very soon. I am still kind of new to this, but the things He has already shown me, which then happened shortly afterwards, have given me a kind of trust that is hard to explain, and I think we will see the man in question in a day or two, even if we see indications that the Feds are already tracking us. Well I guess what I am voicing is the jitters I am feeling, I really should be more confident after seeing those trucks go whizzing by this morning, and the way we slipped through that road block. I have always wanted to know God like this, and to trust Him like this. But now that the opportunity comes , I have to admit that it's scary, a lot scarier than I ever imagined. Ben said. You know I am finding it to be an adventure, sort of on a par with chasing off a cougar or a bear. When He talks to us, and tells us these things, we know that He is going to come through, we just don't always know exactly how or exactly when, but we do know
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that He will do it. I am beginning to look forward to seeing how He does do it. I said. Yes I must say that I am too, even as afraid as I am, for my family's sake. Ben said. Don't worry Ben we just need to take care of the simple things and listen to Him, He will do the impossible things. I said. Then Ben observed, When I think about it I realize that the incredible confusion that the eruption has caused works in our favor, I imagine that a great deal of the computing capability, the databases, for the State were knocked out or hampered by this, so in one sense I feel invisible, but if I think about it too much, I also feel like a sitting duck. That is why I think that all of this will happen quickly, we are not hiding really, although you could say that we are hiding in plain sight. Yet I do not think that God is leaving us to our own devices either. I said, then I smiled and said, He will get us to a safe place soon. After our chat, I cleaned up my pots and the Dutch oven for tomorrow's use, and I sat waiting for Estella to finish cleaning the trailer's kitchen area with Marta. Then we sat together at the picnic table near the dying embers of the fire talking about the crazy improbabilities of the day. I did not have any good explanation for our escape, apart from thanking God for blazing the path for us, a conclusion that we shared. We sat at the picnic table, and I was really enjoying the comfortable feeling of Estella's head snuggled up to my shoulder, when we heard a whirring rumble and after a moment of confusion as to the source and direction it was coming from, we watched a big military helicopter fly over low, and I had the uncomfortable feeling that we were being scanned with night vision goggles. So I asked Jesus what to do, and He said 'Don't worry they are looking, but they are not expecting you to be so brazen as to camp in the open in a public park, so I can easily blind them to the reality of your presence.' Estella also seemed to understand that we were safe even though it appeared unlikely, I found that we were looking at each other and laughing. So this is how it felt to be safe in God's protection when nothing around you seems to reflect that fact. Ernest came over and sat down with us. He looked at us with a merry secret in his eyes. He told me not to be concerned about the chopper, he said with an infectious grin, I just wanted to know when you are getting up in the morning. Oh I thought six might be good, I could get some coffee on and maybe stretch and take Blue for a walk before everyone else is up. I said.

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OK, I think I will get up then too. It might just take me that long to get goin'. Ernest said. Alright Antonio, I will see you in the morning, you two enjoy the rest of the evening. Estella and I were both tired, it had been a long day. So I saw her to her front door and then Blue and I turned in. When the alarm went off at six I was still a little groggy as I got up, so after I walked Blue, I got my stuff to go take a shower. The showers at the camp were basic, but good, and it felt great to wash the grit of yesterday off. When I was on my way back to the truck, I encountered Estella on her way to the showers apparently she had the same idea I had. We traded a kiss in the dark and went our opposite ways. I got the coffee pot filled with water and I rustled up some kindling and built a quickie fire using the coals I could find in the ashes to light the wood and kindling, it didn't take long to get the water boiling and I tossed in the coffee, got it boiling again briefly and set it aside to steep and cool some, I had a moment to reflect as the coffee steeped and I asked the Lord if we should just be fishing and going about our business while the Feds were looking for us. And He said, 'Antonio, there isn't anything you could do if they descended on you and tried to drag you off, but I can keep them confused and blind as well as going in circles around you without ever seeing you, so rest easy and know that I am holding their angry energy in check. You are all under My protection.' I said, Thank You Lord and I am sorry I doubted You. 'That's alright Antonio, I understand the doubts you have, so look up now, I have something to show you.' Jesus said. I looked up and in the quiet early morning light I saw a group of people, a crowd really, stretched out around us, protecting our camps and tents, and as I watched they became more visible and they shimmered with a bright light almost as if the sun had already come over the eastern mountains, yet this was not sunshine, the light danced around them and I could see that they looked like people, but not quite, their faces were different, especially their eyes, and they were very tall, and then just as suddenly they were gone. I was sitting in the dark with my little fire, and He said 'I will never leave you Antonio, never.' I was enjoying the interesting tingle that what I had seen and heard had given me, when I heard Estella walking towards me. What I had experienced must have shown in my face because she said, Ah, you have been with the Lord just now, haven't you? How did you know? I asked.

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I have seen that kind of passing joy on my Mama's face when she has been with Him. She likes to just sit and savor it, so I will just sit quietly with you for a little while. She said and sat down next to me. We sat and held hands quietly for a while, then after a few minutes I told her what I had asked Him, and what had happened, so we sat together a little longer before others were stirring, and I was surprised to see Ernest coming back from the showers, since I hadn't seen him go, and I saw Ben stirring and Thomas, Robert and Thomas Jr. getting up. Robert leaned back into the tent briefly, and Martin came out. Estella let Blue into the trailer to snooze with Anna, and she got her fishing rod, I poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Ernest. And I offered one to Estella, and she said with a mischievous grin, If it's OK with you, I'll just snitch some of yours. Oh sure, I said and smiled back at her, so I found a big mug and filled it up. We were all assembled, though most of us were sleepy, but I think I counted a rod for each person and each family had a tackle box. The coffee was flowing freely. So I suggested that we could fish the lake above the dam and at least have a chance of catching something other than walleye, and I went to the truck cab and got my rod and tackle box. Estella picked up her rod and took a pretty good slug of coffee and I got as close to the grounds as I dared before I tossed the rest of it into the grass. And we were off, slogging along quietly since not everyone at the park was awake yet. We reached the shore just as the sun broke out, I was glad because the air was humid and felt a little chilly. The sound of the water going over the nearby spillway was a constant background noise. I did notice that it was not quite as loud as it had been yesterday, and then I realized that with the upper river clogged and blocked with ash that the river would eventually wind down to a trickle. I felt a bit sad to think of it like that. I chose my lure carefully, because I was going to try to tempt the brownies with a shiny spoon, the shinier the better. Estella had chosen salmon eggs on a hook, she smiled at me and said, I have always gotten results with these, so I am going with what works for me. I looked around to check on the folks around us, Ernest was already fishing with an intense look on his face,and moving his lure periodically to entice. I noticed that Martin had pulled out the brightest, gaudiest lure in the family tackle box and snapped it on his swivel. Thomas and Ben had teamed up and they were fishing the entrance to the irrigation canal that yawned next to the dam with the canal going away across the countryside. Robert and Thomas Jr. had passed us and they were fishing upstream. I surveyed the river before my first cast and I heard 'watch where the light is Antonio'. So
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I looked and sure enough there was a shaft of sunlight hitting around the middle of the river. So I cast past it and pulled my spoon through it, and I saw a swirl of interest near the surface. So when I had reeled in, I cast in the same place and this time I got a hit, just past the shaft of sunlight. I don't know what that fish had for breakfast, but I could certainly tell he was rarin' to go. I just couldn't tell what he was going to do next, I thought he would head for the bottom, but he stayed up and fought it out, running and even jumping a couple of times. When I finally landed him he was a pretty good sized brown, no record setter, but I was pleased to see him, I can't say he was pleased to see me though. Meanwhile Estella had pulled in a couple of slightly smaller browns, they were a good eating size especially for pan frying. Ernest had tucked into a group of walleye and was pulling in some good sized fish. I began to see the common sense of Estella's approach as I watched her pull in another brown. Sure my fish was bigger, but she was getting all the action. So I asked the Lord about it and He said 'cast in front of you Antonio, there are many fine walleye to be had.' So I did and I saw a ruckus in the water as if something were chasing my spoon, I cast again and got a hit. It was a nice sized walleye like the ones Ernest had been catching. He fought a little but I was surprised how little considering his size. Anyway I cast again and got a good hit but did not hook anything. So I figured I was on the north end of Ernest's group. I caught the rest of my limit in walleye, and I picked up my stringer and headed for the camp, Estella and Ernest joined me with their beautiful catches. We oohed an aahed over each other's fish and then I said, Well Estella, Ernest, what do you say, we clean the trout to pan fry for breakfast and then set up and filet all of the walleye, put them on ice and have them for lunch? Sounds like a plan, Ernest said. Estella was excited about having caught most of our breakfast, OK, let's get on it, but we need to take precautions about cleaning the trout. Yes, we need to throw the innards in the trash instead of into the stream, because of whirling disease. I said. So Ernest and I set up an assembly line or maybe we should call it a disassembly line. And we cleaned trout and filleted walleye for all we were worth. Ernest had an ice chest full of ice for the kitchen to use so we made up a big bowl of walleye filets and set them in there, and as the men and boys came back from the river we cleaned and filleted their fish too. Adelita, Marisa, Madalena, and Ernest had the breakfast duty so we just moved on over into stoking up the fire and pan frying the trout. Adelita made bacon and scrambled eggs with toast for those who didn't want fish or to serve on the side. Ernest
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dug up the percolator innards to our coffee pot and perked up some coffee. Breakfast was good, the trout was delicious and everybody was served in a timely fashion. When we were finished washing up I noticed a pickup truck slowly cruising around the campground. It pulled up right in front of my trailer, I heard the Lord say 'This is the man from the ranch'. The one who was driving the truck was a long lanky older gringo who looked like he had ridden his share of horses, and roped a steer or two in his day. He climbed out slowly and said Buenos Dias. I returned the greeting adding Seor. He walked up to me and said, I don't know exactly how to ask this question, and I certainly mean no offense or disrespect, but are you all refugees from that big eruption up north? I smiled at him and offered him a cup of Ernest's good percolator coffee, and I said cagily, That depends on who's askin'. Well, he sighed as he accepted the offered cup, The feller who's askin' might just be a rancher who is in a fix and who needs a lot of hands in a hurry. That feller might have had all of his good legal Mexican cowhands up and go home to Mexico when martial law was declared. And seein' as how I am that feller, I thought I would check on this campground and see who might be hidin' out, since I heard on the radio that they are pacifyin' Albuquerque. Now I know that that might be an unpleasant experience, and I figgered that some folks may have taken their chances by headin' south. So I came to have a peek. Well, that's pretty interesting since so many of us stand in need of a job and a place to lay our heads, in a manner of speaking. I said. Alright, so you think we could have a palaver about it with your adults, and heads of households. He said. Sure thing, Mr. ah? I asked. Oh I'm sorry, John, John Fitzgerald, but most folks call me Zack, or Don Zack. Zack said. I reached out and shook his hand, Antonio de Paquim, Don Zack. Very well Seor, I will see who is available. I said.

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I took about six steps, leaned into the trailer and I caught Marta's eye and said, The man from the ranch is here, and he wants to talk to all of us. Marta smiled and nodded before she turned to get everyone up and out of the trailer to attend. I took off for the farthest tent which was Ben and Marlita's and I found Ben straightening out his fishing tackle,and organizing his tackle box. The man from the ranch is here Ben and he wants to talk to all of us. I said and nodded to him significantly. Thomas and Elena's tent was next. Thomas, I said, The man from the ranch is here, and he is looking for help, he wants to talk to all of us. Thomas said, OK, and started to call Elena, Robert, Thomas Jr., Michelle, and Martin. As I passed on by Lena ran up to me and grabbed my hand. Next I started for Ernest and Adelita's tent, but then I noticed that they were already sitting at the picnic table with Don Zack, drinking coffee and exchanging pleasantries. When we all arrived and got settled Don Zack cleared his throat and began, Hello, my name is John Fitzpatrick, I own a pretty good sized ranch in the Mimbres valley, off to the west of us here. The other day when martial law was declared my Mexican work force, who were all here legally by the way, felt it best to leave and return to Mexico since they thought that the National Guard would come and take them away to camps. Personally I do not blame them at all, I understand why they felt that way, but it left me in a bind. I had to pay off each man and his family for a season's work and I have winter coming on, and still quite a bit of work to be done. Now paying every one before our fall roundup was finished has left me short on cash, but I have been thinking about it since I saw the last family off last night, and I thought it might be good to re-institute the system that the old ranchers used for cattle drives, and that is to sign each person up for shares of the outcome of each season. The more responsibility you have the more shares you will get. And everyone will be included, not just the cow punchers. If you help in the kitchen or maintain tractors, or buildings or plant the garden, it will be the same for each of you, you will have a share in the profits this way, no matter what your job ends up being. I didn't just have hired hands I had families working for me and we got along pretty well, so as a consequence I now have several empty houses and a bunkhouse which those families and the hands were living in. Each season is defined by the times I can take cattle to market. Whenever we can sell
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cattle late spring and fall, I can divvy up the profits. OK, these are the high points, you will have room and board, we have a type of profit sharing, and with all of us pulling together we will have a good working environment. So this is what I am faced with and this is why I am making an offer like this because I am sunk without help. And I don't care if none of you have ever ridden a horse or seen a steer before. We can train each of you for each job you take on. Well that's about all I can say about it I know that you might want to see the place before you make up your minds. I have an errand to run in Hatch so I will be back in about three hours. You can tell me what you decide when I return, and if you decide to go and have a look you can pack up and get ready to follow me back, the trip goes through the desert and then over a mountain road and it will take about two and a half hours to get there. So I will give you a chance to talk and I will be back in a while. And with that he drained his cup of coffee, said, Much obliged, and got back in his pickup truck and drove off. The Ranch For a little while we sat quietly and wondered what we could say. I excused myself and sat in the back of the truck and journaled, and the Lord just underscored that this was where we could live and it was what he had for us to do. So when we got together to make lunch I had to say that I counseled taking him up on his offer, and not surprisingly, considering our prospects, everyone else was for it too. Since we had made the decision it was like a weight had been lifted, and we laughed and prepared our lunch with nothing to look forward to but a God given adventure ahead of us. Each family made their separate preparations to leave, rolling up or folding up their tents, so when Don Zack drove back in we were ready to offer him a lunch of walleye and to accept his offer to go see his ranch. He was pleased to hear it and we had a pretty good time at lunch with our curious questions keeping Don Zack pretty busy. There was one thing that I just had to ask him about so I ventured a question myself. So I said, Don Zack, if your name is John where did Zack come from? He laughed and replied, When I was younger and more worried about the day to day workings of the ranch I pored over the books so much that my hands started calling me Sacapuntas or pencil sharpener in Spanish and eventually it got shortened to Zack, I figgered it was just as good a nickname as any.

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That's great Don Zack, I will remember the sweat and attention to detail that brought you that moniker, and remain diligent myself. I said. Our campground arrangements were paid up through that day, so there was nothing left to do but pack up our lunch things and leave following Don Zack. Zack had a quick word with each of the drivers and satisfied as to everyone having enough gas and everything he waved, hopped in his pickup and started off with us right behind him. This time I chose to bring up the rear with my truck and trailer, so we followed a great string of cars, Estella was riding shotgun again and Blue was in his accustomed seat between us. We went up 187 north for a little while, and Estella had just picked out a good CD to play when we turned onto 152 and headed west. We had a good time singing and enjoying the promise of the mountains to the west, but it sure seemed to take a long time to get to them. After quite a while we rolled into Hillsboro where Zack pulled us all over to allow us to use the bathroom and stretch our legs. Hilllsboro looked like a semi ghost town to me with some fairly nice shops and then old abandoned buildings not too far away from them. I took the opportunity to ask Zack about them. Oh Hillsboro used to be quite a town in the late 1800s, early 1900s it was a rich mining town and the county seat too, but the ore played out just like it usually does and the county seat got moved to Hot Springs, which is now Truth or Consequences. The ruins of the county courthouse are over on that street there, but there really isn't much of it left. Yeah, there are a lot of these flash in the pan places here and there in the mountains, I have run across quite a few myself, a couple of falling apart buildings and such, but some I could not even find on the map or even discover their names. I observed. Some folks used to call the Black Range here the Devil's Mountains, I think they called it that because of the Chiricahua Apaches that used to live here, but it seems to me that the devils were the miners and soldiers, just about every account I've read the miners were the ones stirring up all the trouble, and the soldiers were just as bad. I think that we could be living in peace with the Apaches here today if it hadn't been for them, and in my opinion it is a great loss. Well I reckon we ought to mount up and keep moving. Zack said and he got back in his truck, and started the engine to signal that it was time to get rolling. From there on the scrubby desert growth began to change into bigger bushes and then pines trees first scattered and then thick, 'til the sides of the road were lined with them. Up and up we went through curves and gentle switchbacks, and then we were heading down and I caught a glimpse of the valley below through the trees as we crested a ridge.
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When we got fairly onto the flat in the valley we turned right on 35 and started through the town of San Lorenzo. Things were pretty green here and it seemed that the floor of the valley was blessed with a good bit more moisture than we had seen at this elevation on the other side of the mountains. There wasn't much to see there, San Lorenzo is a modest community, there is a house here and a Mom and Pop gas station there and a small airstrip, and then a clutch of houses. But what struck me was how lush the valley was compared to the desert. On we went passing small vineyards and little places with horses and some steers. I thought it was a little strange to see yucca trees growing in the middle of grassy pastures, but there were lots of them here. We kept on climbing and passed through the community of Mimbres, the valley narrows a good bit after Mimbres and still we kept on. The pastureland started to be dotted with pine trees, but there was still a great deal of flat pasture up ahead which we could see through the trees on the side of the road. Just about the time when I wondered when we would be getting there, Zack turned in to the gate of his place and we rattled over the cattle guard, and rolled up to a compound which was on top of a little rise, I saw a cluster of adobe buildings with metal roofs and wide overhangs. There was smoke coming out of the chimney in the big house, and I caught a whiff of it. Ah, pion! We all pulled into the places Zack pointed out for us, he had me pull off to the side for the trailer's sake, and I liked his choice for there was quite a view over the valley towards the river. Zack took us on a quick tour, the horse corral, the barn/equipment building, hay storage, and he showed us the extra houses he had, and the bunkhouse, it was a longish building with bunks for about eight. He took us out to the edge of the little plateau that the compound was on and he gestured out across the valley and said. This is the range we winter our cattle on, it is surprisingly mild here in the winter, but when it snows we get out the tractor and a sled and put out some good hay. We are really fortunate that it is so mild at this altitude, because we don't have to resort to that very often. Then he clapped his hands together and said, Hey let's discuss it over supper, I think that Rosa has gauged the size of our crowd and started something nice. So we followed him into the big house. I looked up from the group and saw a man riding in on a horse, so I thought I would introduce myself, I turned away from the group and said Buenas tardes since I noticed that he looked Hispanic. Ah, Buenas tardes, I guess you are the group that Zack was looking for in town. I hope you like the look of the place, we could sure use the help. Oh I'm sorry, I am Juan Luis, I am the foreman, and wrangler. He said and we shook hands. I said, I am Antonio de Paquim, and this is quite a setup, I don't know about the rest of us, but I am very impressed.
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Have you had any experience with cattle Antonio? Juan asked. I have been herding sheep for the last five years up in the Santa Fe Forest, up by the Jemez mountains, of course you know I can't do that anymore. I said. Oh well sheep, they are not the same as cattle, but you have taken care of a herd, you will catch on quickly. Juan said. Do you ride? I said Yes, but it has been a while since I was in the saddle all day long. Ah now that is like riding a bicycle, you never forget. You will get along fine then. Juan said as he unfastened the cinch and lifted his saddle up and off and turned to place it on the fence. He pulled the saddle blanket off and took a towel and dried the horse's back. Then he brushed the horse down quickly and efficiently, and lastly he checked the hooves for rocks and clods. Juan turned the horse loose into the corral and picked up the saddle, bridle and blanket to put them in the tack room, I followed him in and he showed me the extra saddles and such that they had for the hands. As we were going on in to the big house Juan said. Well I was hoping that there would be a few of you who could ride and help me bring a bunch of steers, about a hundred and fifty, down to that big corral over there with the loading chute, so we can load them into a semi and take them to Magdelena. We were left with one more truck load, to make for the fall roundup I am willin' but I am not sure of my skills at herding such big animals I said. It is just a matter of your being in their way when they want to wander off and pressuring them to go in the direction you want them to. It is not as hard as it sounds. Hey, let's go get something to eat, my wife Rosa is a great cook, you will be ready to wrastle a bear after you eat her cookin'. Juan said. We went into the house and found the dining room in a state of preparedness, and as you might have expected at a place where everyone from the lowest hand, and the youngest child to the boss was routinely accommodated, the table was enormous and it was set with acres of china and silverware. I noticed that the kids had gotten into the spirit of helping, and Robert, Martin and Thomas Jr. were bringing out the big carafes of coffee and water and some of the food dishes, while Michelle and Madalena and Anna were putting the finishing touches on the place settings. Don Zack was holding court with the adults, he was kind of giving a chalk talk, and explaining the details of his share system so that no one would be in any doubt as to how it worked. Rosa rang a bell and the adults started to filter in. I joined Estella, and was content to follow her. She chose to sit by Juan, Juan and Rosa's seats were at Don Zack's right hand. Don Zack introduced
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everyone all around and he allowed each person to say their own name. So then Don Zack said, Alright let's eat! And what a glorious meal it was, Rosa was accustomed to cooking for a large group of people and she intended to bowl us over with quality and quantity. The boys in particular ate like they had hollow legs. We had enchiladas, flautas, tamales, rice and beans and a gigantic bowl of pozole. I had to sample everything, of course and I must say that everything was excellent, Rosa's cooking was indeed one of Don Zack's selling points and she did him proud. So we ate as we hadn't dreamed of eating at the shelter. When the meal was over and we were savoring our coffee Juan said, to all of us I have been talking to Antonio and I learned that he has spent some time in the saddle so it gave me hope that we might have enough folks who can ride to bring about 150 steers down from one of our far pastures in the morning. Don Zack has told me that you may still want to choose not to work here, so I thought this could be an opportunity for those of you who had some of the needed skills to try out a day or two of the kind of work we do, and if you choose to leave we will pay you for the days worked, and maybe we can get some chores done which need to be finished. Now I am the wrangler as well as being the foreman and even if you are uncertain of how to saddle and bridle your horse, because it has been so long since you have done it, do not worry I will take care of all of that. So I will meet those of you who want to give it a try at six in the morning at the corral So we had a discussion about it, Ben had done quite a bit of riding whenever the police had to search for missing people. And Ernest said he had spent a great deal of time in the saddle in his youth. Thomas and Roberto had done a lot of riding though never for work. I felt a sharp nudge in the ribs and Estella said, Hey are you only considering guys, for this. I said, I am sorry Estella, I didn't know you would be interested. I am, after all I think it might be nice to know what you guys are up to all day long. She said with a grin. So it was fixed, we would be up early and give it a try. I went over to Juan and said, Well Juan, there are six of us who are willing, and after you give everyone else some time on horseback I dare say you will have more. Bueno! He said, I will see you all in the morning, and he clapped me on the shoulder and said good night. We bade Don Zack good night and went out to the houses, I figured that as long as Blue would be allowed in I could bunk in the bunkhouse, and Robert, Thomas Jr. and Martin
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were with me on that score. I did go see if I could be of any help in moving beds or furniture, so that each family could get settled for the night. And when that was done and most everyone was satisfied with their arrangements. I gave Estella a kiss and asked if I should tap on her door if she wasn't up, she said, I'll be there Mr. Early Riser. and gave me a playful push on my way. I went to get Blue and our bedding and we set up in the bunkhouse, since there were extra beds I put Blue's dog bed on an empty bed. He hopped right up there and looked right at home. I set two alarms and fell asleep almost immediately. When morning came, it was all cool and misty, so I took a shower in the bunkhouse and found my working togs, pulled on my boots and found my long sleeve shirt for the cool humidity. I still had about thirty minutes 'til six so I went to see what was doing for breakfast. I learned pretty quick that Rosa had one rule for breakfast, you can eat all you want, and swill as much coffee as you can hold, but at breakfast you have to rinse off your own plate and mug and put them directly into the dishwasher. I met Estella at the table. She had on her work jeans, a pretty stout pair of boots, a lightweight flannel shirt and a well broken in hat. Hello sleepyhead, she said teasingly, We are in for an adventure today for sure. Yes it has been a while since I was on horseback, Estella. I was wondering if we could do the sneaking Blue into Anna trick this morning so he won't try to follow us. I said. Sure, Anna is probably pining for his company anyway. Estella said. So when we finished eating and had put our plates and mugs away, we snuck Blue into the house that Marta and Anna were sleeping in. Fortunately Anna and Blue had been missing each other and he lay down to snooze contentedly at her side, and she put her arm over him. Estella giggled as she came out and told me about it. We went down to the corral and found Juan was already catching and saddling the mounts, Ernest was there petting and getting to know his selection. Juan struggled a little with his latest catch and with firm and gentle efforts he saddled the horse, as he walked away to catch another he cautioned That one will be a handful, I felt challenged by that and I turned to approach the problem horse, but Estella beat me to it, and she was sweet talking the old hammerheaded roan like he was a sweet tempered little child. So I picked out another horse, in fact the one that Juan brought in next, a sturdy looking gelding. I told Juan that I thought I could take it from there.
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I did not have much trouble with the saddle and my horse was no trouble at all. I looked in his eyes and he looked as sleepy as I felt. Ben, Robert, and Thomas joined us and picked their mounts. Juan mounted his horse and so did we. He told us about the low stress method of getting steers to do what you want them to do. We each had a lasso tied to our saddles and he told us that we wouldn't have to try to lasso anything today, but that the coil of rope would come in handy as a way to shoo a stubborn steer, and he said, I want you to think in terms of your presence being the thing that moves them. A steer wants to go in the direction he is facing so if that is the wrong direction you can turn him by crowding or pressuring him at his hip. And you can keep a bunch together by riding near them back and forth along the direction you don't want them to go. I will show you as we get a small bunch together. The bunch we are going to bring out all have their horns. This is something that goes with the country, we have cougars and coyotes and black bears here, so the horns come in handy. Respect those horns, keep enough distance to allow you to react, and I don't think we will have much trouble today. Ah! We looked a game bunch as we rode off! Marta had gotten up to watch us go, she waved good-bye as we left the compound, we followed Juan as he rode down a dirt road which headed higher up the valley. I was watching Estella with her hammer headed mount and she did not seem to be having much trouble with him, he was a spirited fellow though. We rode for quite a while and then I noticed steers in the trees and we came around a bend in the road and there were steers all across a meadow. Juan turned and addressed us. We are going to take most of the steers in this area, we do have some in the trees so I will take one of you at a time to show you how to flush them out. Antonio come with me and I'll show you the first couple. I followed him into the woods and watched as he eased a couple of big old steers out of the comfortable place they had found for themselves. Juan really did just basically take up the place where he didn't want them to go and then ride toward them to move them, he had to turn one to do that but I got a pretty good idea of what he had spoken of earlier by watching and helping when I could. He drove those steers out of the trees and then he told me that it was my turn to do the same. Juan hung back and watched, to help me or save me from difficulty if need be. I went back through the trees and found a stubborn cuss of a steer way back in the trees who seemed to be hoping for us to pass on by and leave him alone, fortunately he was not as immovable as he first appeared when he
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glared at me as I approached him. I soon had him turned and pressured him by riding across close behind his tail, and finally after he had given me an evil look he started out the way we intended. And I noticed that Estella and Ernest had taken these new arrivals in hand and kept them from straying back by riding back and forth between them and the woods. Estella's hammerhead roan seemed to relish the motion, and he played his part marvelously, tossing his head and prancing as she kept the steers away from the trees. So it was my turn to take up her station and keep the clutch of steers together. I rode up next to Estella and said, It appears that you have done this kind of thing before. Yes, I used to help out an uncle at round up time, she said, and turning her duties over to me she rode off to get her lesson in flushing the cattle out of the trees. Our little bunch grew by twos and threes and then ten at a time until at last Juan flushed a group of fifteen out and we just about had the required number. So Juan strung two of us out along each side of the bunch and then he took the rest and we pressured the bunch from the rear, and off we went. It was fairly slow going on our way back for we had to go at the pace of the cattle, but before too long I could see the compound and I saw Don Zack come out and open the gate to the holding pen. We were not quite ready for the peculiar problem of persuading them to go through the gate, so Juan rode ahead and got the lead cattle going in and the rest followed. The gate was closed and we were done. We were a little overdue for lunch time, but Rosa was prepared for that. We unsaddled and put away our horses and joined our families for a great lunch. After that first experience I don't think that anyone could have chased us away from the ranch. The truck came a few days later, we loaded them up and off it went to Magdalena with the last of the fall round up's beef. So then Juan began the serious work of teaching us to to take care of our mounts and how to find our way around the ranch, of course he concentrated on the kids who did not have much experience and soon Martin, Thomas Jr., Anna, Michelle and Madalena were riding like troopers. Even little Lena started riding too. As Juan would say, you can't start them too young on horseback. Juan acquainted us with routine chores like riding and mending fence, and moving the cattle to new pasture to prevent over grazing. Pretty soon Blue and I would pack a lunch and go out in the morning and ride all day checking fence and keeping tabs on the herd, getting back in the evening for a nice big meal. Sometimes Estella or one of the boys would come too, and a big bunch of us would go out to move the herd to new pasture. We were all still learning something new everyday. It was a grand holiday for us when we went to Silver City and bought some needed togs. Most of our crew needed hats and jackets for the coming winter. Don Zack had paid us for our small part in the roundup and Ernest took the opportunity to get a good sturdy pair of boots and a hat, I got a hat and a nice pair of work boots for the cold. We all
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bought quite a selection of heavier flannel shirts since we were thinking about the weather to come. We hoped to keep our new hats good until it got cold by wearing ball caps, and we found some good ones at the feed store. We came home proudly wearing our purchases, and we kind of looked like dandies until we broke our new boots and jackets and whatnot in. The winds were getting colder and we had just finished making the last of the hay when the first snow fell, it was a quick storm that only lasted an afternoon and was melted in a day. But we started to get the picture of how things were going to be for the winter. Juan got out the tractor and the sled and demonstrated how we would be spreading the hay when the serious snow started falling. After a couple of storms, Don Zack said it was stacking up to be a peculiarly cold and snowy winter for the Black Range, but since we sometimes had a week of warmish sunny days in between storms it was not too bad, sometimes the cattle were even able to forage normally for a little while after the snow melted. Don Zack was a little worried since he felt that the colder winter was because of the volcano's dust and ash in the atmosphere blocking the sunlight, but he was happy to have the record snows for moisture. Each time the forecast was stormy we would ride out and move the herd into a canyon for shelter. And then when the snow came we would take the hay out to them. Finally after a rather long cold snap we were looking forward to a forecast week of sun and warmth, what we hoped would be the beginning of seriously warm spring weather. Estella and I enjoyed the first warm evening by taking a long walk down the dirt roads and back since the snow was gone. And then we sat on the tailgate of the truck watching the full moon cast it's silver light across the valley. Sitting out to watch the moon and the stars was relaxing after the walk. I was captivated as usual by Estella's closeness and warmth. We had come a long way together in a short time. When the volcano kept right on erupting, burying even parts of Albuquerque, and making a dead zone out of what had been a thriving, populous area for centuries. We decided that this place was as good as any to start a new life, and we could start it together. It was better than just a good place, because this is where God had sent us when we needed shelter and work and Don Zack was a good boss and he was really interested in keeping his good workers. So since the other houses were taken we asked Don Zack and Juan about building another one for us. Of course this was no great surprise to them, since we spent so much of our free time together. We were tickled though, when they actually got excited at the prospect of building our house. So they told us to draw up a floor plan and give it to them, in a day or so. And that was what we were talking about until we were both pretty tired. And that was what I was thinking about as I was drifting off to sleep. Sure, I knew that it would not be a fancy house, none of the others were, but it would be our space together. So I was thinking of a cozy living room with a little corner fireplace and Estella was always there in the room the way I pictured it. You would think that that is what I would dream about with those warm and
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pleasant thoughts in my head, but it was not to be. I slept the sleep of a tired man, deep and wide, and I dreamed. I found myself in a valley way up higher in the mountains. A valley which was very much like the one I had travelled to with the Lord, before in the vision. But it was somewhat different, anyway the Lord was there and we sat around a fire and chatted a little, he asked how I was getting along with Estella, I thanked Him and I joked with Him because He already knew all about that. Then the Lord said, Antonio what is that over there. and He pointed to a stretch of highway which was visible from our vantage point. There I saw an army truck on the highway, I had a quick thrill of fear and I asked the Lord what we could do. He smiled at me and said, Come and see. Then we were on the highway in front of the ranch, and the truck was coming down the highway from higher up the valley, Jesus held up His arm to the truck and it stopped, only then could I see that the driver was not in uniform, in fact the driver had a tired and scared look on his face. Jesus took me around to the back, we looked under the flap and there were a lot of people in varying degrees of exhaustion, and some were injured and bleeding, one looked dead. He said, I am sending these people to you to take care of and to help them heal and find their hope in Me. So the rest of the dream was taken up with the details of helping the sick and wounded, and the person I thought was dead was only gravely wounded. An odd factor later in the dream was that we took the truck and drove it over a cliff. Then I was standing with the Lord again on the mountain. I looked at Him and He smiled, Do not worry about it Antonio, I will prepare the way for them and for you. Then suddenly I was waking up, so I turned on my reading light and adjusted it to keep it from waking or bothering the boys, and I wrote this dream down. It was still swirling around in my head when I was finished, but I did not have any trouble getting back to sleep. Morning came and the boys got up before dawn, and went to do their hay spreading chore for the day, this time using a wagon, since the snow was gone. After yesterday's hay spreading duties, I was to be given a few hours in the morning to relax before joining Thomas in the workshop, we were going to do an experiment today and try to make a test batch of biodiesel. Don Zack had read about it and had raised a large plot of canola seed last year, so that we could try it out. I made myself comfortable by propping myself up in bed and I journaled the dream. I wrote the dream down and then wrote What would You like to tell me about this dream, Lord? And I listened, He said This dream is about something which will happen soon, the high valley where the dream started is your life with Me, you can retreat to a beautiful place to be alone with Me, but sometimes we must come back down to do things and to help people. These people will come, they will escape those who wish to keep them imprisoned, beyond all hope or reason, just as you saw them, in an army truck. They will
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be tired and hungry and some of them will be wounded, some of them quite seriously, they will be hunted as well. I will help you find the doctor who will tend to the wounded, but the rest is in My hands. These people will need more than just to rest they will need people they can count on, and the people they will count on are you and your family here. They will rest and they will heal and some of them will join you. But most of all they will learn to trust Me and listen to Me from you and your family. And driving the truck over a cliff in the dream means, that you will dispose of it. But remember Antonio one thing that is important to remember from the dream, I was with you the whole time, all the way through the dream, and I am with you all of the time, I will never leave you. Well I was amazed that we would soon have visitors, and that they would arrive in such a state. We were so far off the beaten path I had become used to the idea that we were quite isolated. It was still a couple of hours before I needed to go help Thomas so I showered and knocked on Marta and Estella's house door and asked them if I could talk to them. Something about my tone must have alarmed them because they hustled me in. I sat at their kitchen table nursing the cup of coffee that they gave me. and laid the whole thing out before them. Marta was very hopeful and encouraging, This is the reason we are here, she said, These people are His and we are to help them and hide them, from those who mean them harm. Marta said, We need to tell Don Zack about this as soon as we can. I said, but will he understand how we are so inclined to obey a dream from God. Yes Antonio he will, while you and the men have been busy with the cattle, I have been talking to him about our history together, and he seems quite fascinated by it. I think he is even journaling regularly since I showed him how. So now is the time to see how he will respond. Marta said. I laughed and said, Wow, I never thought I would be telling a boss 'hey we need to take in some fugitives from the law and hide them, because I had this dream.' Antonio, this is no ordinary situation, Marta said, Oh no, this is an extraordinary one. And I might suggest to you that what these people have endured is not moral or legal. Of course Marta was right, and I saw immediately that we had to tell Don Zack, and Juan. Alright, if this is what we must do, lets do it. I said.

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Let's go eat breakfast and we will ask Zack if we can see him in his office. Marta said. We went in to eat breakfast and we discovered that it was waffle day. We got our waffles from the busy kitchen where Marisa and Madalena were helping Rosa. As usual Rosa already had some of the more complicated parts of lunch on the stove, fortunately with her massive commercial grade setup there was ample griddle space for everything else to proceed and Marisa was cooking the bacon and sausages which were popular with our people to accompany the waffle breakfast. Madalena was making coffee and keeping plates and utensils coming for Marisa's efforts, and carrying full plates out to the table. It was the active business we had grown used to in Rosa's kitchen. Rosa had three waffle irons going at once and soon we had our waffles and coffee and we had breakfast with just about everyone who had not gone out early. Juan and Don Zack were at the end of the table discussing the spring calving which would soon be upon us. Marta went straight down there and sat near them. So Estella and I followed suit. Marta waited for a suitable pause in their conversation, and she said, Don Zack something has happened which I think you should know about may we see you and Juan in your office, after breakfast? Of course Marta, we will be glad to. Don Zack said. Oh Antonio, I meant to ask you who was the LHA (Level Headed Adult) who went with the boys this morning. Juan asked. Ernest went with them today, although I think it will not be too long before Robert is qualified to be an LHA. I said. This question from Juan was an indication that as Juan had trained us and became confident in our abilities he had been relieved of some of his extra jobs like wrangling, and supervising the herding. So it was Anna who had caught and saddled the horses this morning. And there was a designated adult (LHA) who went out with any group of younger folks to work, not only to supervise, but to teach them the value of older, wiser heads. Juan was therefore allowed to worry about things that truly needed his attention, like the preparations for calving. We finished our breakfasts, put our plates away, and met Don Zack in his office, Juan sat in a chair near us as we launched into the story of my dream, I read them the account of the dream and the journal entry I had too. After I finished Don Zack asked what we would need to do to be ready. I said, We will probably need to enquire about a Doctor who can get here as soon as possible, and think about how to hide the truck until we can get rid of it. Other than that I think that we
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could put some people in our tents and maybe scatter some others amongst the houses. I wonder if we should make the bunkhouse the infirmary if there are enough people hurt to warrant it. That sounds good, Don Zack said, so it really won't take much for us to be ready. No, I don't think it will. I said amazed at how smooth this was going. Antonio would you mind making enquiries with Doc Marvin about who can get here the quickest in case of an emergency. Juan asked. Oh no, I don't mind at all. I said. OK, then we can be ready for this in a very short amount of time can't we? Don Zack said. Yes, I think we can, Don Zack. I said. Good, was there anything else you all need to tell me? Don Zack said. No I believe that was the thing we needed to alert you to. Marta said. Almost everyone left the office except for me and Zack. I was still a little surprised that he had been so easy about it. I am surprised that you took me seriously and that you are so prompt to act on the dream. I said. Zack looked at me, crinkled up his eyes and said, Antonio, how do you think I knew where to look for you and your family that day last September? I have had some dreams too. and he laughed at my surprised reaction. Later on I called Dr. Marvin and expressed a desire to be prepared for accidents on the ranch, and I found out that in case of an emergency he could not get to us in less than 2 hours (he was in Silver City), and the local ambulance service (even the helicopter) would take a long time to get to us too, but he did mention that there was an old retired Doctor, Dr. Maldonado up the canyon from us who did occasional work during the times when the local Doctors were stretched thin. So when I got his phone number I called him and asked him if he would be available in the event of an emergency or accident on the ranch. He said that as long as it was an emergency he would be willing to come. I told him that I was relieved to hear it because First Aid training was all that we could
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offer the injured. So I asked him how far up the canyon he was and how long it would take him to get to us. And he said, Antonio, I am your nearest neighbor up the canyon that is my place you can see when you look over your farthest fence. So I guess I could be there in maybe ten or fifteen minutes. I thanked him for his time and he said, Don't mention it. When I hung the phone up I heard the Lord say That is the Doctor you will need Antonio. The spring calving went well we only had to call the vet a couple of times and when that was over and the pastures resembled a nursery with calves gambolling and frolicking here and there, we had to send out more riders each day and work in shifts. You see the predators know all about the new calves, they can smell them, and they know they can eat them if they can get them away from their horn bearing mothers. So we had our people riding around the periphery of the ranch up in the hills on the sides of the valley and down through the middle staying alert to any commotion or odd sounds. This is where Blue did his stuff so well. He could locate a cougar by the faint scent on the wind and take us right to him. Of course by the time we got there the cougar was gone, but that is what we were trying to do, keep them off balance and moving, hopefully away from the stock. It was during one of those afternoons when we had a bunch of people out patrolling. Estella and I were saddling up to go relieve some of the boys, when Thomas Jr. came riding hell bent for leather down the valley and when he got to us he said there was an Army truck coming down the road, down the valley. I only had a moment to decide what to do, so we rode out the front gate to the road, and when we saw the truck I held up my hand to get them to stop. The driver looked confused, but he stopped. I called up to him, Hey, you are a long way from your base if you are lost up here. I was making a point of ignoring his lack of uniform. Listen Mister, he said, we have people chasing us, and we have wounded. I know you don't know us, but we could really use some help. Alright turn in here and follow us. I said indicating the gate. Estella rode ahead and moved the tractor out of the barn, so we would have a place to hide the truck. We took them straight to the barn and pulled the truck inside. I tied up my horse and walked around to the back of the truck and climbed up to look and there were, I think five wounded people, and the others were trying to control the bleeding for three of them. So I went off like a shot to telephone the Doc, meanwhile since Zack was out with the herd, Estella raced out to find him and tell him that the truck was indeed here. I was one of the
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ones who had had First Aid training so after I made the phone call, I hopped up inside the truck to see if I could help. Anna was on the lookout for the Doctor and she showed him to the truck when he arrived. There was iron gray in his hair, but there was no hesitation in his manner He started triage immediately separating the superficial from the serious and pretty soon he had me applying pressure to a bleeding wound while he attended to the most worrisome case. Anna was up in the truck and helping, she started bandaging the least serious wound while I helped the Doc. The worst case was a young woman with a gunshot wound in her thigh. She was pale and shivering, to my inexperienced eye she looked shocky, and of course she was bleeding. The Doc started her on saline solution and sent me for some blankets to cover the wounded. The folks who had been attending them had covered them in extra clothing so we meant to improve on their efforts. As I carried the blankets from the bunkhouse Zack arrived and started questioning the driver. Zack discovered the Doctor was there and was satisfied that that part of the situation was well in hand. So he quickly enquired as to the number of non-wounded from the driver, and he went off to see what Rosa could do to feed them. Then he came back and started pulling people out of the truck to get them inside for something to eat. As we worked on the wounded, Ben came back in from the field and he hopped up into the truck and added his First Aid training to the mix. We had burn victims, but I had never seen anyone burned like this before, it was like their whole skin on one side was blistered. Under the doctor's supervision we gave the burn patients some pain killers. As he worked to save the lady with the gunshot wound, Doc said, Yes, those burns look real bad, but they are superficial. Oh, they are plenty painful, and it will take some time for them to heal, but they are not very life threatening. I just wish I knew who dropped these lads into the fryer. So Antonio, Ben, I guess from the setting and the nature of these wounds that we do not have the option of taking these folks to the hospital in Silver City? Dr. Maldonado asked. I would guess that it might be a tricky situation, Doc! I said. Ha, Doc Maldonado said, you are lucky that long ago I had to tend to the wounded in a scrap between the Indios of the mountains and the Federales in Chihuahua, I have treated many gunshot wounds before, and often with a need for secrecy. I've started her on a saline solution, but this young woman needs some fresh frozen plasma which I have in the refrigerator in my office at home. I need to call my wife to bring it down here. And now we have her covered up and warm and the bleeding is stopped I can go make that call. Antonio would you show me where the phone is.
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Ben came over to look after my patient, and I showed the Doc where the land line was in the big house, since no one could use their cell phones anymore up here. I was on my way back to the truck when I ran into the driver, he asked about the wounded lady and I said that the Doc seemed optimistic and was sending for some plasma, He seemed relieved, and he said , All during the trip up here, I thought that it would be too late for her. I asked, are you her husband or her boyfriend? No just a friend, but my biggest concern was for somebody else. he said. Who would that be? I asked and I followed as he climbed back into the back of the truck and went straight to the corner by the cab and there, hidden in a pile of discarded clothing, were two little girls about five and six years old. In the entire time I had been in the back of the truck I had not noticed them or heard a peep out of them. They were huddled together and they were watching the wounded lady. These are her daughters. the driver said. I leaned down to them and said Hello my name is Antonio, the Doctor is taking good care of your Mama, and we think maybe you would like to have something to eat? A little hand came up out of the pile of clothes and took my hand, I am Natalie she said. We walked over near their mother and looked at her. The Doctor had given her something for the pain and she seemed to be sleeping quietly. Doctor Maldonado climbed back up into the back of the truck, he nodded to me and said, There, my wife will bring what the patient needs most and we will see, she has several things in her favor, she is young and strong, the bullet didn't hit the bone, but went straight through the muscle, and we now have the bleeding stopped. I was able to start her on the saline solution and now she is resting easily after I administered the pain killer. So things are looking pretty good for her, considering. Is this someone who is worried for her? he said as he hunkered down to look at Natalie. Yes, sir, she said shyly not taking her eyes off her mother. Me too, I am Corinne, said the other little girl sidling up next to her sister. Oh good, when she can talk I will send for you, but it might take quite a while, she
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needs to rest. Doc said. Then he straightened up and looked at me. My wife will bring the plasma as soon as it is thawed and I think our patient will be in good shape then to make a recovery. Why don't you go on and feed the little ones, Ben and I will finish up here, and then when you return, we will start moving everyone to a bed. Oh Doctor I forgot to tell you, her name is Cora, the driver said. Thanks, the Doctor said, That always comes in handy. Alright, let's go, I said to the driver. We climbed down from the truck and lifted our little charges down too. As we headed into the big house the driver said, By the way I am Joe and I know you are Antonio. Pleased to meet you Joe, I said and we shook hands. Just then Madalena rode in from the upper valley, she looked like a wild thing with her hair all streaming out behind her. She unsaddled her horse and turned it over to Anna, and started for the big house. When she saw Joe she said, Dad? Dad is it you? It is you! and she ran to hug him. We thought you were dead! So you were safe here all along! Joe said as he held her, how about your mother is she here? Yes Dad, she has been mourning these seven months. But she is well. Madalena said. Well, for a while at least all mourning is over, Joe said as he held his daughter, Are you going to get something to eat? Yes I am on my lunch break. Madalena said. Are these friends of yours Dad? she asked indicating the girls. Yes this is Natalie, and Corinne. Girls, this is my daughter Madalena. Joe said. I am pleased to meet you, Corinne said. Me too, Natalie said. Do you get to ride that horse all of the time? Corinne asked. Yes, Corinne I get to ride almost everyday. Madalena said to the curious child.
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Oh wow, Corinne said and she giggled. Natalie looked up at us and said by way of explanation, She likes horses, a lot! We all had to laugh at that. In the kitchen Rosa had outdone herself, when she heard that she had lots of company, she broke out about five dozen of her delicious homemade frozen tamales, and put them in the steamer. That along with beefing up everything else she was preparing, put a gargantuan amount of food on the side board for us to choose from. Joe excused himself and asked Madalena to take Corinne under her wing. Then he asked me, Antonio where would I find Marisa. So I walked him to the door and I pointed out the house. And I said Just go over and knock on the door, Joe. Ernest or Adelita may open the door and you might be able to surprise her. Then Natalie and I went back to the side board to get our lunch, but I guess Joe didn't make it to the house unseen because we heard quite a commotion outside, and a little later Joe and Marisa came in arm in arm. They were both overcome with joy. Well, Joe was a very hungry guy and we piled up a plate for him while he and Marisa were talking, but I am not sure that he saw any of the food he ate, as their eyes were glued on each other through the whole meal. Madalena had to finish her lunch, and ride back up the canyon to relieve someone else for lunch. While Joe and Marisa were still gazing at each other, I suddenly remembered that I needed to vacate the bunkhouse so it could become the infirmary, I took Natalie and Corinne to the bunk house to help me get my things out and into the trailer, Blue saw us and trotted over from Anna's side. Corinne carried my bedroll and Natalie my extra pair of boots and I carried my jackets and rain gear, we made quite a parade across the yard. I opened my trailer up with the key and we all went in and dumped our burdens, I opened the windows and vents to air out the trailer. And we made a second trip and this time I took the suitcase I hid my undies in, so one suitcase had undies and socks, Corinne carried that, and another had shirts and Natalie carried that, and I brought up the rear with a large stack of folded blue jeans. I went back once more for Blue's bed and anything I might have forgotten. Then I headed for the First Aid closet to find our stretcher and armed with that I recruited Joe and returned to the truck to see what was going on. I noticed that the plasma had arrived, and it was hooked up to the iv, and Mrs. Maldonado was looking over the patients, I learned later that she was a nurse and always helped the Doc in situations like this. I caught Ben's attention and asked him if there were any patients we could move to the bunkhouse yet. He said that there were and I handed up the stretcher, the first to be moved was one of the burn patients, he was pretty doped up and probably wouldn't feel anything, but the look of his injuries made us handle him gingerly anyway. We used the blanket he was lying on to shift him over onto the stretcher. Getting him off the back of
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the truck wasn't easy but we managed. And we deposited him carefully on one of the vacant beds. Next was another burn victim. And after that we had a person who had a bullet wound in their arm, it really just clipped his forearm, but it was still necessary to keep the wound from breaking open again. So we handled that patient with care. The last guy, save one, was a fellow who had caught some buckshot in his backside and lower back, Doc pronounced the wounds to be minor and he could remove the shot under a local anaesthetic, but that he would rather do it in the bunkhouse with a solid bed under the patient. So we moved him too, lying on his stomach. Finally we came to Cora and the Doctor wanted to set up a place to hang the iv bag so we escorted him to the bunk we had in mind and we rigged a hook on the wall near the bunk, then we came back to get the patient. Doc had to supervise so we wouldn't mess up and bust open her wound, but after a few tense moments we got her off the back of the truck and into the bunk and settled. Joe came in with Marisa and asked the Doc if he could talk to the patient. The Doc said that she was going in and out of consciousness so don't expect much, but it would be OK. So we gathered her girls who had been following us back and forth as we transferred the patients, and Joe took them in to see their wounded Mother. Cora, he said, I know you must rest and heal, but I thought I should tell you that we have the girls and we will take care of them as long as it takes. And Corinne and Natalie each held her hand for a moment Cora looked at them while she was conscious and acknowledged them sweetly as a mother does when she sees that her girls are doing well. Doc said, OK now, she needs to rest, we may ease up on the pain killers a little tomorrow to see how she can bear the pain and she might be able to talk more then. So Joe and Marisa led the girls away and Joe said, Marisa, when Cora thought she wouldn't make it she made me promise that I would take care of the girls so I think the least I can do is take care of them while she mends. Of course, they are very sweet girls, anyway it will be fun, and we can see how their Mama is doing every day so they can see how she is getting better day by day, and we have some girls here about their age for them to play with too. Marisa said. Well now that the patients had been moved, I figured that I had better get along and relieve someone, so I got a mount and Blue and I scurried on up there, When I arrived I stopped to tell Robert and Thomas Jr. that they needed to move their stuff out of the bunkhouse and that I had opened up my trailer, and they were welcome to bunk there. I relieved Martin so he would be able to deal with his stuff too. I spent the rest of the afternoon riding the path we used to go around the herd and I watched Blue to be sure
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that we did not have any uninvited guests. We were relieved in the early evening by the nighthawks, Ben and Thomas who carried shotguns loaded with rubber buckshot and big flashlights, because bears can get mighty curious about calves at night. I rode back home with Zack and we chatted about what we were going to do with that dang truck. We now had about fourteen extra people not counting the little ones, and we could always say that Zack had hired some extra hands for the spring ear notching and tagging, but that truck! So we decided that we had to talk to Joe about that to see if he had any ideas about how to move the truck without being detected. Zack was cooking up an idea about leaving the truck out in the desert when we came around the bend and saw Thomas' big tent set up, by the big house. Of course it made sense, we had to make space for our honored guests. We trotted on in and found Anna putting things away for the day. We unsaddled our horses and thanked Anna for staying a little late to accommodate us. Then we washed up and went in to supper. Rosa had gotten out the extra folding table and ordered the men to set it up and set up some chairs to go with it. We certainly had a full house now. We got our grub and settled down, Estella had saved a place for me across from Joe and Marisa, the little girls were sitting next to them as if they had always eaten in this big strange place. Zack noticed that Joe was about finished eating and he asked him, So Joe now that we have seen to the emergency cases, tell us what happened and how you all came to be in our neck of the woods? Alright Don Zack, we were all in a Fema camp, I think they called it a containment camp, on the other side of the mountains in Arizona. Anyway we had been there ever since shortly after the Valles Caldera erupted. And it was not particularly nice, we were treated like prisoners, and we weren't allowed to leave and even our movements inside the camp were restricted. They did not allow all the members of a Pueblo or town to live together. So we pretty much made friends with whoever we found ourselves with. Over time we sort of started hearing some nasty rumors through the grapevine that the Feds were going to take us to another location, a worse place, by rail. And they did have the railroad tracks running right along one side of the camp. So the day came and the train arrived and they got out this big ray gun thing that was mounted on a Humvee and whenever anyone got out of line they zapped them with it, it is like a big microwave and the victims of it's beam screamed in pain and collapsed. I had heard of this weapon before, but this one seemed to be a much more powerful version. We weren't in that first group they took, so we carefully watched what they did when they loaded them up, and we decided that it was time for us to act like men instead of cattle. So I talked to my hut mates and we came up with a plan. The Apaches among us considered it a matter of honor to figure out a way to defeat that ray gun and use the Humvee to bust through the fence. The problem the Feds had with the ray gun thing is that it can't shoot through the fence, it had to be inside of the fence to work right. So the
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Apaches decided to create a diversion and rush the thing in full view of the operator so he would shoot them with it. Meanwhile we would hook around the other side, pull open the Humvee doors and drag the operator and driver out and then drive it through the fence. The plan worked to perfection, but our Apache brothers suffered terribly for it. That operator and driver had such a surprised looks on their faces when we dragged them out, I will never forget it. Any way very few of the guards were willing to open fire on us, but there were still a couple who did. So we busted through the fence and the guards scattered when they saw how mad and determined we were. We were pouring through the hole in the fence, but Cora outran all of us and she caught a guy trying to start and take off in that truck, and she pulled him right out of the cab onto the ground that's when one of the guards shot her, just before we got to him and laid him low. So we staked out the truck while people were streaming by, then we went back and got our Apache brothers who were still alive, that's why they were burned so badly. We got the girls, and our wounded, and we piled into the truck. I had been in the Army and I worked on those trucks, so as soon as we got out of there I took a different path from the mass of people who escaped and I pulled over and disconnected the satellite tracking system. I figured, if they didn't know where we were they wouldn't know where to look for us with the spy satellites. So then I checked on the wounded, and lit out for the hills. So we got to the mountains and kind of got lost, but when we came out in your valley, and there still wasn't anyone after us, I felt like we had a chance. We didn't even see a chopper after we got into the mountains, and the ones we had seen were chasing the others. So here we are, and we are very grateful for your kindness, but we should probably keep moving so we don't lead the Feds to you. Zack stood up and said, Nonsense, you are all welcome to stay here until you are rested and healed. It is that truck that has to go. When Zack said that, our guests erupted in applause and surprised shouts. Now they knew they would have a chance at freedom. Supper was over and there was an almost festive air when Juan announced that we would be watching An American In Paris tonight in the living room, so most of our people took their chairs and found themselves a good place to see the screen. Movies were something we occasionally enjoyed, especially in the winter, and this one was just the thing to allow our guests to forget their troubles for a couple of hours. Don Zack called to Joe and I while the people were going into the living room, Juan as usual was showing a cartoon or two while the family who had kitchen duty cleared off the table and when they were finished, they and Rosa could then join the fun. As we heard the strains of the familiar musical beginning we sat down at the far end of the long
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dining room table and had a serious discussion about what to do with the truck. Zack said, How much fuel do you have left in the tank, Joe? Well it's a diesel and it is a fuel hog, I am afraid that there is a little less than a quarter of a tank left. Joe replied. Good, Zack said, we could tell he had an idea percolating, so we waited a little to hear what he had in mind. Zack smiled and said Alright you said that you disconnected the satellite tracking device, right? Joe nodded and said uh-huh So that means that they are thrown back on visual reports of your presence and checking on who bought diesel where. So if they think that you haven't gotten any more fuel, then they will draw a circle on the map of the limit of your range and look inside that circle. What if we gave you five extra gallons from our tractor fuel storage and we drove a little outside that circle and parked the truck under a bridge in a dry wash. As long as they didn't spot us driving it out they wouldn't see it under a bridge, from the satellites, even if they were looking for it in that area. It would take them a very long time to find it and the trail would be very cold by the time they did. I like that plan, Joe said, It is certainly better than waiting for them to find us here. I think we could maybe keep them from spotting us right away, if we took down the cover on the back and just drove it out with the flat bed, that way it looks a little more like a semi-tractor. Alright are you up for doing it tonight, Joe? And Antonio are you ready to follow us in my truck and pick us up? Zack asked. Joe said, The sooner we get rid of that white elephant the better. And I said, Just say the word, Zack. I think we should leave after midnight that way there won't be many who see us on the highway. And I think you are right Joe, we should alter the profile of the darn thing. Zack said. So we went out and took down the canvas cover over the back and the side rails so that the truck had more of a flat bed, then we put a little extra fuel in the tank and washed the
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blood off the truck bed. And by the time we were finished the movie was over. Estella and I walked a bit in the cool night air and I told her that we had an errand to run after midnight, but we should be back by dawn. She had a slightly worried look, but she knew we had to do it. Our parting that night was unusually sweet, and Estella's kisses were full of the hopes she had for our adventure. I put Blue under Anna's care before everyone had gone to bed. And I sat up for a little while in the back of my truck since the boys were bunking in the trailer. Then I settled down to journal, I wrote down all of my worries and expressed the things about this which were particularly scary, like being spotted by satellites. Then I wrote What would you like to say to me, Lord? And He said, Antonio, do you think I would leave you just when things got tough? No, I am no fair weather friend. You will be fine tonight, I have given Zack the perfect place to put that truck, and it will take days for the government officials to find it. Do not be alarmed if you see them flying about and looking for you, it will be just as it was when they flew right past you before, they will look but they will not see. And you will be safe at home before they even start thinking to look farther out. I am with you and you will not have to worry about what to tell them, for I will cause them to look in all the wrong places. I set an alarm and drifted off for about an hour, the alarm rang and I got up and out and I noticed that a fairly heavy cloud cover had set in. Ha, I thought, try seeing details through that! I sat on the tailgate and pulled my boots on, then I went in and found Zack and Joe making coffee in the kitchen. We had a pretty good collection of travel mugs up in the cupboard so I chose one and waited for the coffee maker to finish. Zack gave me the keys to his truck and said It will be after about one hundred miles but when you see us drive straight off the highway pull over and wait for us, we'll hide it and come join you. Sure thing, Jefe, I said and gave him a grin. We got tanked up on coffee and headed out to the trucks. Juan opened up the barn door, Joe and Zack climbed into the cab of the big truck and it roared to life, I started Zack's truck and waited until they had backed the big truck out and started off before I eased it into gear and followed, I waved at Juan as he closed the barn door. I was to follow at a discreet distance, but close enough to keep an eye on them. We used the most deserted highways I have ever seen in my life. Zack had it all figured out he took 61 south to 180 and 26 back towards Hatch, but even though I expected to see some truck traffic on 180 it was pretty much deserted. Finally as we were approaching Hatch, the truck slowed down and turned off the highway and across the ditch, as I slowed and stopped where
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they had left the road I saw that there was a heck of a wash that ran under the road there. I rolled down the window so I could hear them coming and soon they crossed the highway. Zack offered to drive and I slid over, the whole operation after I pulled over barely took more than six or seven minutes, and now we were on our way home. Even though it was still possible for us to get stopped for a curfew violation, and we were not out of the woods yet, we felt like the most difficult part of our trip was over. We turned north on 187 to take a totally different route home. As we hummed along the highway, I told Joe about our adventures and how we came to work for Don Zack. He was amazed that we had been so fortunate. I told Joe that God had been looking after us very well, and that even his escape and restoration to Marisa and Madalena was part of that. I asked him if he could ride a horse, and he said he did a lot when he was younger, and we would just have to see how well he could ride now. We were feeling like we were on the home stretch when we had passed through Hillsboro, suddenly we heard the beating of helicopter blades. Zack quickly pulled over on the shoulder and doused his lights. Sure enough a chopper came skirting around the slope of the mountain shining it's massive searchlight. The light flitted passed us and did not rest on us, the chopper went on ahead following the highway up the mountain. Zack waited until the chopper was out of sight. I think we can breathe now, that was close! he said. I don't think so, they are looking for that easily recognizable truck, or they would have taken more time to examine us. I said. From your mouth to God's ear, Joe said. Yes Joe, yes indeed. I replied. Zack eased back onto the road and proceeded, slowing down warily at each long curve, on the way down, in case coming around the next curve would bring us face to face with our rotor-bladed nemesis. Juan and Anna were awake and working and gave us a cheerful reception as we rolled into home. They were up getting the relief for the nighthawks ready. I was pretty close to being bushed, so I bade everyone good night and stumbled to my bed in the back of the truck. Blue saw his chance to catch some more shuteye and he joined me. The next morning I was up and showered in time for lunch, Estella and Marta had the kitchen duty and I wondered that they had spared me since I was part of their family.
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Anyway when she saw me, Estella brought me a nice big bowl of pozole, which Rosa had taken great pride in making for me. I was hungry enough to eat that and more, so I grazed the sideboard, rather freely. When I sat down I noticed that Joe and Marisa were eating with the little girls. I was still a little groggy, so I sipped my coffee to clear my head. Estella sat down next to me and lavished me with one of her warmest grins. Mama and Rosa took pity on me and released me early. She said. I am glad. Wow, I am not even sure what I was supposed to do today, I said. Ha, you and Joe and Don Zack did enough last night, duty-wise, to last for weeks, at least it's like that when you think about the risks. Estella said. Well for me it was easy since the Lord told me it would come off without a hitch. Though I must admit to a thrilling moment or two. I said. OK, you can tell me about it later when we are together. Are you ready to show Joe the ropes today? She said. Well I guess I am as ready as he is to try it out. I said. Juan had a little conference with our new arrivals and whoever was willing he put to work. Estella said. Good, I said, we did have a couple of things which we had to put off during calving, so now they will get done before the summer. Yes, and this place will be twice as lively as usual, Estella observed. We ate in silence for a while, and I thought, how good it was just to be close. Another good thing is that having lots of hands available may help us get our house before summer. Estella said with a heart stopping flutter of her eyelashes. Ahem, I said Well, I am looking forward to that, querida! And so am I, mi hombre de misterio. She said and cast a smile over her shoulder as she picked up her dishes to go. Well, I took a moment to savor our exchange and then I noticed that Joe had finished his meal. So I said, Joe are you ready to ride, my friend?

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He said, Show me the horse and I will try it out. We went out to Anna's realm and asked for a couple of mounts. She saddled Joe's horse while I saddled mine. Joe said, OK, I have watched you do it, as a refresher, Anna, I should be able to remember how next time. We mounted up and rode out of the compound, I explained to him as we rode that we were just keeping the predators away from the calves, and that so far we had been pretty successful. I noticed that he really did have that sort of stiff look of someone who hadn't ridden in quite a while, but that was how we had all looked when we started here, so I figured he would do all right. We spent the afternoon looking for clues that cougars or bears were about and then when we were relieved at dusk I asked him what he thought, as we rode back toward the cozy lights of home. Well, he said, I can't believe that anyone would pay me to do this. I mean, I like it pretty good. Well we'll see how enthusiastic you are when you are sore tomorrow. I said. Oh, I was counting on that when I said it. Joe said with a grin. We got back, unsaddled our horses, and turned them over to Juan, since Anna had kitchen duty. We stopped briefly at the bunkhouse to check on Cora's progress and we found her sitting up and talking to her girls. Joe said Now that is an encouraging sight. Cora, I am glad to see you looking so good. We didn't know if you were going to make it for a while there. She laughed and said, Ha, it will take more than a bullet to slow me down, well any more than a few days worth of slow down, but after that look out! We laughed and Doc said, Alright young lady it is time for you to rest, will you gentlemen take the girls in to supper? We gathered up Corinne and Natalie, said good night to all and we went on in to supper. Since my family had the KP, I washed my hands thoroughly and presented myself to help. Estella loaded me down with a tray of glasses to finish setting the table with, and a
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pile of silverware after that. Then I carried in whatever I was handed, baskets of rolls and pitchers of iced tea. Because of the new arrivals we had worked into a situation where we ate supper in shifts with the nighthawks sharing the table with the first group and the second group were people like me and Joe who came in later. With Joe, Marisa, Madalena and the girls, Juan and I and eventually Rosa, Marta, Anna, and Estella, and Doc came in too, we made quite a jolly company. So Doc how are your patients doing? I asked. He said, Well, you saw how Cora is, she will be fine, and the other gunshot wounds are coming along too. But I am going to keep the burn victims sedated for a couple of days more. Those burns may be superficial, but they are about the most painful thing imaginable. Other than that they seem to be responding well enough. Ah, here comes my relief now And I saw Mrs. Maldonado go into the kitchen and get herself a cup of coffee. She came out and sat with Doc. Have you eaten yet Maria? He asked. Yes Adam, I ate with the nighthawks earlier, and before that I slept like a baby in that guest room. So I am all chipper and ready to go. She said. OK, I'll be finished in a minute and I'll pass the baton. He said. We were full and satisfied, and we all felt a deep gratitude for Rosa's wonderful cooking so we showered her with compliments until she blushed. So all that remained was for us to clean up after ourselves. And then Estella and I could go for a walk under the moon. I told her about the helicopter and how it didn't even see us, just as the Lord had said it would. She told me about how she relieved the riders for lunch and then when she returned she helped Marisa take care of the girls and how Lena and Anita had come over and played until they were all tired out. It was good to walk together talking quietly in the moonlight. It was good to hold Estella and share her warm kisses. It was even better to share our dreams. In fact, it was the perfect end to the day. Martial law never was repealed, the volcano continued erupting violently for twenty years, Santa Fe, Albuquerque and Los Alamos and many of the Pueblos were buried, and lost to the State for quite some time to come. But in the midst of all this tragedy,
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God had provided for us and our fugitive friends. We kept Don Zack's ranch hopping and shared in its profits, Estella and I were married that June and we got our little house and Zack and Juan built one for Joe and Marisa too. Cora healed up nicely and to Ernest and Adelita's delight moved into Marisa's old room in their house, and her two little girls were like sisters to Lena and Anita. Under Doc's care the Apache brothers healed and joined us in our daily chores and helped make the bunkhouse a lively place. For such obviously brave young men they were pretty shy guys, but oh my, they did enjoy a good practical joke. Anna, Madalena, and Blue kept up their running, and the Apache brothers ran with them too, and they can keep up with them too, I am told. As the Federal officials became more difficult and demanding the local government became far less responsive to them, especially since so many people were disappearing into Government custody never to be seen again, so in effect they hid us all from the Feds. We lived and worked and we were happy to tackle whatever Jesus brought for us to do. People were wandering in from camp escapes, and other similar events periodically, we even found some folks starving in the hills, so we took them in and fed them and put them to work in the garden, or whatever suited their skills and let them rest and escape from the chaos of the world for a while, and many of them were folks I recognized from the shelter, so long ago. Most of all people came to seek God, of course He sent them to us. The ranch became a place where people up and down the valley would come to learn about the Lord who cares for us so much that He is willing to talk to us, and walk with us, and guide us every day. These days Estella and I look forward to taking Blue, strapping our tent to my saddle and driving the cattle up to the high pastures in the summer, where we spend a lot of time in that lovely isolation. We do not find it lonely at all for the Lord meets us and walks with us there.

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